For Better And For Worse
by A Whispered Word
Summary: Ever wonder if the universe was out to get you? "I'm looking forward to spending the year together. Guess I'll be in your care again, Isuke-sama." Isuke did. With the Black Class reunited once more, Isuke wondered, how long is a year exactly? It didn't matter. Isuke just wanted it to be over.
1. Chapter 1: August

**Chapter 1: August**

"Why do I have to be back here?"

Isuke complained to herself as she slumped down on the familiar, and probably expensive couch of her old dorm room.

Against any type of protest she had made, Isuke was back in Myōjō.

Not just Isuke herself; all of her former Black Class acquaintances had been reluctantly dragged back to the academy.

The reason? According to Nio, some of Myōjō's secrets had been leaked to the authorities by an anonymous source. What Myōjō is, and what they do. Everything had almost been entirely exposed; by what they believed to be was the work of a hacker.

Because of this, the people behind the Black Class decided to recruit their last active members as a precaution, in a desperate attempt to ward off any type of suspicion.

Meaning that, to their dismay, and Isuke's annoyance, they were all requested to act and function as a _normal _class until further notice.

Releasing a tired sigh, Isuke began to narrow her gaze, in an attempt to once again take in the familiar surroundings. All the Black Class members were re-assigned back to their old rooms. All for the sake of their convenience and _comfort_.

_'How considerate.'_ Isuke sarcastically thought to herself, closing her eyes and allowing her head to rest back against the couch.

She was tired.

And right now, all she could think about was how if it hadn't been for her incompetence in _eliminating _Haru, she probably wouldn't have to be here. She could have been relaxing in a villa or something…

Isuke gritted her teeth at the bitter memory of her past humiliation. Only to frustrate herself further when she failed to drown out those particular memories.

Slightly furrowing her brows, she wondered if the universe simply desired to spite her, by bringing her back.

Ichinose Haru.

How had she failed to dispose of such an easy target?

Twice, to be exact.

With a discontent sigh, Isuke stretched out her long limbs, and finally allowed herself to actually relaxed.

She repositioned herself on the couch, and laid-down. Bringing her hands up to her face, she shielded her eyes from the room's artificial lights and settled for a short nap.

_'...'_

Isuke stirred.

A sudden presence began to loom over her.

Her fingers, as if on instinct, twitched for the knuckle-knife she always carried with her. Even though the presence itself did not feel like an actual threat.

Quickly uncovering her face, Isuke abruptly sat up, only to be greeted by warm playful eyes, and a familiar grinning, Pocky filled expression.

"Yo." Haruki casually mused, raising her hand in a gesture of greeting.

Leaning back, Isuke made a face. She was still in somewhat of a daze from her short-lived nap. But not matter how incoherent her current train of thought was; even she understood what was going on, sadly.

Because of the current _circumstances_, she would once again have to room with Sagae Haruki.

It's not that Isuke _hated_ Haruki.

But the first time they met, they had obviously gotten off on the wrong foot. And after that, Isuke couldn't really stand her much. The way Haruki always managed to look so carefree, her distracting and impolite habit of talking with Pocky in her mouth, her constant nonchalant smiles..

The way she had disrespected Isuke on the very first day they met.

_'Well not exactly disrespect, but it was rude to just casually grab Isuke like that.' _Isuke remarked to herself.

Seeing her reflection in Haruki's eyes, Isuke came to notice how dangerously close they now were. And she found herself trying to suppress a foreign heat that was currently making its way up to her cheeks.

Still, there was a formidably acceptable distance between them, but for Isuke: 'This overly familiar idiot is too close for comfort.'

Isuke stirred.

"Do you need an invitation to get off?" She had been trying for a more sarcastic and annoyed tone, but her voice came out as a small quiet rasp instead.

Haruki blinked.

"Oh! Sorry, sorry, Isuke-sama."

Haruki practically jumped to her feet.

She scratched the back of her head, and looked down at her roommate with an apologetic expression.

Quickly collecting herself, Haruki chuckled. And wearing her usual grin, she stretched out an inviting hand in an attempt to help her roommate up.

"Guess I shouldn't have tried to startle you like that, huh?"

Avoiding eye contact, Isuke cleared her throat and hurried to her feet, bluntly ignoring her roommates' polite gesture. She then began to leisurely smooth out the wrinkles of her skirt.

Isuke peeked at the clock, which elegantly hung on the wall.

Weird.

_'Was the room always this cold?'_ Isuke wondered.

No, Haruki had just been that warm.

Haruki's body heat had been so familiar and somehow comforting, that Isuke found herself missing it after just a few second of its absence. Coming to this realization made Isuke feel both uneasy and angry with herself.

She shrugged the thought off, and turned her attention to the grinning pocky-chewing-red head before her.

_'Isuke won't be having this casual idiot get the best of her.'_

"Why are you even here?" Isuke deadpanned.

Putting her hands on her hips and shifting her weight to the side, she purposely gave out an air of unshaken superiority.

"Can you even afford the luxury of being here and letting your massive family starve itself? Aren't you supposed to be playing Martyr or something?" Isuke coldly stated, in a somewhat defensive manner.

Taking a bite out of her Pocky, Haruki's usual grin turned into a small smile.

"It's all been taken care of, Isuke-sama." Haruki replied, and turned away, going for her bags, which were located, near the door. Isuke's gaze followed Haruki around the room.

Squatting down beside her bag, Haruki began to unpack her things.

"Hey, Isuke-sama, do you have any-"

Déjà vu.

"Hold on a second." Isuke interrupted, bringing a hand to her temple.

Haruki's brows went up, and she stared at Isuke with open surprise. She knew that Isuke was never one to pry or get into other people's business. She didn't care enough to do so. That's why her sudden interest in Haruki's affairs had taken both of them by surprise. Even Isuke couldn't quite understand herself why she had asked.

Isuke looked away, trying to look as indifferent as possible.

"What do you mean _it's all been taken care of_?"

"Isuke-sama is actually worried about my family's well-being? I'm touched." Haruki lightly teased.

This girl..

Closing her eyes, Isuke brought her hands together and flashed her usual poisonous smile. She did her best to stay collected.

"My, it's only natural for Isuke to worry about the _dead poor_. They are a hindrance to me." She bitterly remarked between her teeth.

Haruki shrugged.

"The people here in Myōjō's were nice enough to pay some of our fees and keep my family fed while I'm here."

Chuckling and staring at the ground, Haruki added:

"Since I had been working at a nearby construction site, I had originally declined when they told me that I had to come back."

Haruki stood up and looked Isuke in the eye.

"So they told me that they would temporarily provide for my family, while I was here."

Haruki smiled, and snapped another Pocky stick between her teeth.

"I also get to see you again, and have a shot at finishing my studies."

Haruki's smile widened, showing genuine affection.

"Like killing two birds with one stone."

Isuke almost instinctively glanced away. Unlike this idiot, Isuke wasn't planning on wasting her time playing school.

Haruki stretched out her hand.

"I'm looking forward to spending the year together. Guess I'll be in your care again, Isuke-sama." She enthusiastically added.

Isuke opened her mouth with every intention of sarcastically retorting.

Snapping her mouth shut, she just rolled her eyes.

"Idiot... You can take care of yourself."

With that being said, Isuke promptly took Haruki's hand into hers, and reluctantly returned the gesture.

**Authors Note:**

**Well guys, I really hope you enjoyed this rough first chapter. I plan to make this a dramatic/fluffy/angst-y sort of ordeal. I've had this idea in my head for a while now, and hope to get it out there. **

**This Chapter didn't have any fluff to offer (and was a little slow), but we're just getting started! If you guys want to see anything in particular, please let me know. Hopefully things will move faster next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Roll call!" An energetic voice beamed from the other side of the door.

Being tugged back into reality, Isuke realized that she was still holding on to Haruki's hand. Which to her surprise, was surprising soft.

Isuke felt a strange sense of embarrassment taking over her at the thought. So she decided to act before it became physically noticeable. She withdrew drew her hand back in one swift movement and securely crossed her arms tightly against her chest.

"Shouldn't you be getting that?" Isuke demanded, barely glancing at the door; Grateful that her voice hadn't betrayed her.

"Coming!" Haruki responded, dashing for the door, clearly unperturbed by Isuke's rude manner.

And oblivious to Isuke's uneasiness.

Haruki slammed the door opened, with more force than was actually necessary, and an all too familiar _thud_ was heard.

Haruki raised a brow in confusion when she saw that no one was standing at the other side.

"Um, Haruki-san."

A small and pained Haru lay sprawled on the floor.

"Whoa, guess you really can make the same mistake twice." Haruki chuckled.

She slouched down, and gently helped Haru back to her feet.

"Sorry about that."

A giggle escaped Haru's lips as she recollected herself.

"It's alright, Haruki-san."

Tokaku had not gone unnoticed. She had been defensively flanking Haru throughout the small exchange. For some reason she looked more concerned about Haru than she had been when they had first entered the academy.

Isuke finally came into view.

"Why so stiff Azuma? Afraid the past might repeat itself?" She mocked, impassively looking at her nails as she leaned on the doorway.

Tokaku set her jaw hard and got visibly rigid, her eyes were sharp and ready. Nothing good could possibly come from this _welcoming _encounter.

Not understanding what was going on, Haruki simply stole quick glances between Isuke and Tokaku. She noticed how their body language and gestures were clearly set against one another.

It was only natural to feel confused. Haruki had been disqualified too early in the game to know the details about Isuke's elaborate assassination attempt.

Haru forced out a small laugh.

"Now, now..." She hesitantly interjected, placing a hand on Tokaku's shoulder.

Haru looked at Isuke.

"Haru hasn't seen you since we delivered your diploma, Isuke-san. Are you doing well?"

How this overly friendly girl could go on as if nothing had ever happened, as if Isuke hadn't tried to kill her, was beyond comprehension.

'_What a weird girl.'_

Isuke brought a lightly bandaged hand into view.

"I spent most of my days doing physical therapy." Smiling, she bitterly added.

Isuke couldn't help but mentally groan at the memory of all those unpleasant meetings with her doctor. He was the prying type, and would always ask her how she had gotten those unusual fractures, and then refused to give her any type of treatment until she talked.

There was no denying it; Isuke is attractive. Being led on by this, the doctor decided to come up with his own deranged conclusion. He concluded that Isuke was in an abusive relationship, and was afraid of coming clean about it.

Long story short.

She ended up having to bribe him, so that he would finally stop asking about her _special circumstances_, and not call the authorities.

"I might have to thank you properly for that later." Isuke challenged, directing her eyes at Haru.

Tokaku stiffened.

Scratching her head, Haruki considered the situation for a moment.

_'Well this can't be good.' _

A smile flickered across Haruki's face; she decided to turn her attention to Tokaku, who had now decided to occupy herself by tiredly going through the class registry.

"What happened, Azuma?" Haruki gestured towards the clipboard in Tokaku's hands. "Did you finally find your true calling as the Class Rep.?" She lightly teased, in an attempt to ease the tension.

"No." Tokaku simply stated, never looking away from the registry. "The people here are having a hard time tracking down Kaminaga, so I was appointed until she returns."

Haru politely added. "She's the only person to whom we couldn't deliver the diploma to.."

"Hmmm." Isuke mused in a melodic tone, knowing all too well what Tokaku had implied.

Kouko was still in the assassin business, and apparently, she was getting better.

"I didn't really think she had it in her." Isuke stated with a small indifferent shrug. She quickly glanced at Haruki, who was now making small talk with Haru.

Was Haruki still in the assassination business?

Impossible.

She's too much of a good-natured person. With her family being momentarily secure, she shouldn't have any reason to kill.

Because she had only ever dirtied her hands for them.

Selfless fool.

'_Plus, didn't she mention something about working at a construction site earlier?'_

Thankfully, Tokaku had to finish doing roll call and hand in the documents. This being said, Haruki and Haru exchanged their 'good nights' without any further input from either one of their hostile roommates.

"You know, Isuke-sama." Haruki began, closing the door behind them. "You should really work on improving those people skills of yours." She divulged with a tone of amusement.

"What?" Isuke retorted, looking slightly annoyed at her roommates' useless observation.

Haruki shrugged.

"Isuke has no need for something as useless as getting along with other people." Isuke defensively added.

Where is this coming from?

Isuke doesn't need to get along with other people. Isuke didn't care about other people. She only needed her Mama and Papa, and she got along just fine with them.

"I'm just saying that you might give those you care about the wrong idea." Haruki gently added.

Haruki smiled and made her way towards Isuke, stopping just in front of her.

"You can't always depend on your looks to get your way, Isuke-sama." Haruki quietly uttered as she began to carefully push back a strand of hair away from Isuke's face, carefully tugging it back behind her ear. Haruki let herself play with Isuke's curls, as she slowly retrieved her hand.

"Not that there's anything wrong with that." Haruki finished; flashing a bright smile that somehow had still managed to balance a piece of Pocky between its teeth.

What was that?

Isuke began to turn a light shade of scarlet.

"Isuke-sama, are you okay?" There was a hint of concern in her voice.

What's going on? This was only their first day back in Myōjō.

Scratch that.

It's been less than an hour since Haruki had arrived, and she had somehow managed to work something in Isuke's head. Isuke didn't like this at all. She was supposed to be calm and collected at all times.

Nothing had ever gotten her feeling this uneasy or insecure, much less embarrassed. How had Haruki managed to manifest all of these feelings in such a short amount of time?

This Pocky-loving-idiot.

Two weeks passed.

During the first few days, all of the previous Tenth Year Black Class members had slowly arrived one by one.

Having class was out of the question during those first days. Mizorogi-sensei did all but actually cry in front of his students. He would go on about how honored he felt to have his precious first students back with him, and how as their older brother, he wouldn't let them down.

The atmosphere in the classroom had been tense at first, but as the days strolled by, everybody had slowly loosened up. Other than that, everybody naturally went about their own business. It's true that some of them were a little distraught at the fact that they had to be back in such a horrible place, but they slowly adapted to their routines and got used to it.

Otoya was the happiest of them all, now being out of prison, but her parole officer would constantly check on her, for security measures.

Now into the second week, Mizorogi-sensei was fully engrossed in his lecture about photosynthesis and how it works differently depending on the type of plant and environment.

Isuke, as always, was dead bored. She had tried to stay awake, but was only barely successful in her endeavor.

If it weren't for the fact that her Mama and Papa had convinced her to stay, she would have already left. They reasoned that if the authorities see any suspicious behavior, such as students that didn't return or go to class, they might suspect something. If the police then decided to do a background check, it would be inconvenient because they could figure out who Isuke's parents were.

This being said, she began to contemplate on whether she should take a nap, or just slice the teachers throat.

_'Wouldn't that be problematic?'_ Isuke thought, grinning in self-amusement.

She stretched, and leaned back fully against her chair. Her eyes went to her desk. And amidst her current boredom spell, Isuke had unconsciously begun to notice Haruki.

Haruki quietly sat behind Isuke this time around. And surprisingly enough; she appeared to be diligently taking notes of the lecture.

Isuke leaned forward, and rested her head on the desk, closing her eyes.

She began to intently listen to the soft shift of Haruki's pencil on the stiff paper. The sound soothed Isuke in some inexplicable way.

Somehow just feeling Haruki's presence behind her, and knowing Haruki was there, made her feel a little less bored.

Isuke began to wonder about her roommate. It's weird how you can only get to know certain things about a person once you live with them.

Like the way Haruki would always misplace her boxes of Pocky and panic when she couldn't find any of them. Only to be later relieved when one of them appeared in the most unusual locations, such as either under the couch or inside the bath.

Her habit of always leaving her clothes about the room, and only picking them up when Isuke complained.

How she was such a perfectionist when it came to the simplest tasks, such as doing her nails or brushing her teeth.

The way she sometimes struggled with insomnia and had recurrent nightmares.

Those weird burns and scars she has all over her body…

Isuke slowly opened her eyes and glowered at the ceiling, desperately trying to shake the thought out of her head.

Why was she suddenly so focused on Haruki? Isuke had better things to do with herself.

Snapping back to reality, Isuke felt a something against her back.

"Pssst, Isuke-sama" Haruki whispered.

Isuke bluntly ignored her.

"Pssssssst, Isuke-samaaa." Haruki continued as she repetitively poked Isuke's back with her pencil.

Isuke's brows twitched.

"Heeey, I-s-u-k-e-s-a-m-a." Haruki persisted, as she slowly brought her pencil up to one of Isuke's ears, and poked it.

"What?" Isuke discreetly growled under her breath, slightly turning around and covering her harassed ear.

"So your ears are your weak spot, huh?" Haruki teased, trying to stifle a chuckle.

Isuke became slightly flushed at the accusation. It's been just like this for the past two weeks. Isuke came to the conclusion that Haruki had nothing better to do, other than be an unconscious flirt.

Isuke was about to retort, when the classroom door abruptly opened and interrupted her.

Haruki dropped her pencil, and her usual vibrant and expressive eyes had suddenly gone dull and wide. Her mouth twitched and what appeared to be a small whimper escaped her lips.

Curious, Isuke decided to turn her attention to whatever might be the cause of Haruki's reaction.

Closing the door behind him and making his way into the classroom was a gentleman of average height and built; nothing about him particularly stood out.

Except for his red hair, and gold eyes.

"Um, excuse me, but we're in the middle of a lecture." Mizorogi-sensei doubtfully pointed out, not knowing who the rude man was.

The mysterious man stopped in his tracks. His response was a simple grin, and he proceeded to defensively raise his hands.

"Is that any way to address your employer?" The man asserted. Both amusement and mockery tainted his voice.

Mizorogi's countenance paled.

"I just wanted to make sure that our little Black Class was doing well is all. Since, we all know, they're...special."

A tasteless and crude chuckle escaped the man's lips.

Drawing in a long breath, Haruki tried to dispel the vague nausea that suddenly touched her, and made a conscious effort not to recall.

Not to recall this man.

"Sagae Hakuto is the name." The mysterious man finally said, flashing a perfect smile.

He looked cocky and arrogant, and gave out a menacing aura. Isuke didn't like him one bit.

'_Wait, did he say Sagae?'_

Hakuto's outfit seemed way too formal for a classroom. He wore a wine red suit, accompanied by a white tie, and what appeared to be, very expensive white shoes.

"Yuri-san informed me about the small dilemma that might have caused all you...fine ladies some trouble." Hakuto said, attempting to bite down a bitter laugh, to no success.

Isuke really didn't like this guy.

Hakuto finally turned to face the classroom and one by one examined all of the attendance faces.

For one second, what appeared to be surprise crossed his eyes when his gaze landed on Haruki.

"My, my, what an interesting haul we have this year." Hakuto added, quickly composing himself once more.

Isuke was getting tired of his little constant grin. It had a gaudy and unnatural look to it.

Isuke's thoughts diverted away from Hakuto and focused back to Haruki.

She had now noticed that Haruki had begun to lightly cling to the fabric of Isuke's shirt. She firmly held it between her fingers, as if it were a type of lifeline.

Hakuto's gaze shifted to Isuke, who hadn't stopped glaring at him ever since he first entered the room.

"Inukai..." Hakuto whispered, his eyes got wide, and filled with Isuke presumed was anger.

When he said her name, it almost sounded as if he was spitting out venom.

Isuke froze.

Did she know this man?

"Um, excuse me, um, sir? What dilemma?" Mizorogi-sensei asked, looking very lost and confused.

Hakuto's eyes stayed on Isuke for a little more than what could be considered comfortable. He himself had not noticed, but he had begun to grit his teeth so that he only took note of it when his jaw started to bother him.

He brought a slightly closed hand up to his mouth and loudly cleared his throat, turning his attention back to Mizorogi, whom he now considered a hindrance.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be rude." Hakuto stated with a hint of sarcasm in his tone. "But this is something that only concerns the schools administrators."

Isuke felt Haruki's hand beginning to shake, from what she believed to be either anger...

Or fear.

Hakuto politely apologized for the intrusion and exited with the same arrogance he had first entered with. Except this time around, his attitude looked a little angry.

Silence suffocated the room.

"What's up with him?" Otoya forwardly stated, finally breaking the silence.

"He seems to be quite the character." Sumireko quietly added.

Chitaru and Hitsugi exchanged concerned looks.

Suzu wore a knowing look.

Shiena looked slightly uncomfortable, quietly shuffling in her chair.

The rest stayed quiet and composed.

"I'm not trusted enough to know about my classes affairs." Mizorogi-sensei added, looking genuinely hurt. He hung his head and sighed. "Guess I'm not really cut out to have the honor of being your home room teacher after all."

"Guess not." Nio jokingly added, shrugging.

"That's not true, Sensei!" Haru encouraged.

_'What a bunch of idiots' _

Isuke was more interested in Haruki, who hadn't said a single word.

"Haruk-"

"Sensei, can I be excused?"

Haruki stood up, facing the floor. Her bangs covered her eyes, so Isuke couldn't make out her expression.

Mizorogi was too busy drowning in self-pity that he excused Haruki without even taking note of her unusual tone and behavior.

This bothered Isuke.

Who was that?

Why did he have such an effect on Haruki?

How did he know my name?

How is he related to Haruki..?

No, Isuke shouldn't get involved. She wouldn't get involved.

These were apparently Haruki's affairs, not hers.

As soon as Haruki left the classroom, Isuke's body moved on its own, and she stood up. She didn't even bother to excuse herself as she made her way to the door.

"I-Inukai-san?" Mizorogi began.

Without any words, or regard for the confused stares of her classmates, Isuke left the room.

_'Where is she?' _

Isuke was now walking through the hallways at a fast pace. The only thing that could be heard was the loud _clack_ of her heels against the cleaned and polished floors of the silent halls.

She had already completely scouted the building they were in, in hopes of finding Haruki.

She had quickly gone after Haruki, so the redhead couldn't have gotten far.

How annoying.

Why does Isuke have to bother with Haruki? It's clear that she just wants to be alone.

Or get away.

Whatever the reason was, Isuke was reluctant to admit to herself that she was, in fact, worried about Haruki.

After what felt like an eternity Isuke finally reached the dorm rooms. She felt a weird sense of caution, as she slowly approached the door to her own room.

Isuke was about to knock on the door, but she stopped herself, realizing what a stupid move that would be. It was also her room.

Sucking in a sharp breath, she hesitantly opened the door, second-guessing herself on whether she should enter the room or just walk away.

"Haruki?"

Isuke intently scanned the small living space.

Empty.

She exhaled, not knowing whether it was relief or distraught she felt.

"What am I even doing?" Isuke complained to herself, making her way to the sleeping area, which was mostly composed of two king size beds and a simple nightstand.

Isuke's mouth slightly opened in surprised when she found Haruki sitting in the corner of her bed, unmoving.

Isuke stood there and analyzed her.

Haruki brows were slightly furrowed, and she pursed her lips. Her hands rested on the bed, clenching the soft silky sheets. Her head hung low, like that of a child who's recently been scolded.

Looking confused, and strangely uneasy at the sight of Haruki, Isuke averted her eyes and frowned.

She didn't know that it was even remotely possible for someone as strong and energetic as Haruki to look so torn and weak.

"You know." Isuke began. "You shouldn't cut class. Better not set a bad example for that huge family of yours."

Isuke's tone concealed her actual worry, and successfully replaced it with her usual indifferent sarcasm.

With this Haruki snapped out of whatever trance she was in, and finally noticed Isuke standing just a few feet away from her.

"Isuke-sama.." Haruki stood up, fidgeting a little. "What are you doing here?"

"Class was getting way too boring for my taste. Isuke shouldn't have to sit through that torture if she doesn't wish to." Isuke casually added looking at her nails, pretending to look slightly bored.

A small and unintentional humorless laugh escaped Haruki's lips.

"Well, I guess you shouldn't be the one lecturing me about cutting class then." Haruki added, displaying a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

Silence.

Both Isuke's and Haruki's eyes were averted from one another.

Isuke uncomfortably crossed her arms.

"Haruki." She finally spoke; her voice was now low and uncharacteristically soft. "Who was that guy?"

Haruki's eyes got wide and anxious. They looked panicked. She wore the same kind of expression a baby deer, who was about to be struck by a fast upcoming truck would have.

"I-Isuke-sama." Haruki stuttered. "We should really be getting back to class."

Again, Haruki managed another humorless laugh.

"We don't want our classmates to get any wrong ideas, I mean, you know how Nio likes to speculate, aha.."

Haruki was rambling.

Isuke narrowed her eyes, looking directly at her practically hysterical classmate.

"Haruki, do you know that man?" Isuke insisted, her tone slightly harsh and impatient.

"Ah, is Isuke-sama worried because I suddenly left?"

Haruki scratched her head.

"No need to worry Isuke-sama." Haruki assured her. "I just got a little stomach pain is all."

Un-phased by Haruki's excuses, Isuke plastered on her usual annoyed smile. It was the kind of smile she usually wore when she was either losing her patience, or just being sarcastic.

"Probably because of all that Pocky you're constantly eating." Isuke interrupted, not concealing the satire in her voice.

"Oh, how it bothers Isuke when you leave crumbs all over the place. Are all you poor people filthy pigs?" Isuke finished, tiredly sighing.

Haruki grinned.

She had a guilty look in her eyes.

"Stop trying to lie to me." Isuke asserted, now in a more serious manner.

It was obvious that whatever was going on, Haruki clearly didn't want to talk about it.

She has always been like this.

Always putting up a stoic front.

Never asking for help.

Putting others needs ahead of her own.

It was even like this back when they first had roomed in Myōjō, when their objective was to take Haru's life.

It pissed Isuke off.

Haruki was clearly going through some struggles in her life, and she doesn't ever want to talk about it. She never complains. She just accepts it, as if it's her natural born duty to be there for others, and putting out a bold front.

That wasn't living.

Haruki, she didn't want to bother anyone with her problems.

She didn't want the pity.

More importantly, she didn't want Isuke unnecessarily worrying about her.

Haruki swallowed.

Isuke now fixed her attention to the rooms' window.

"Look... I don't know how long they plan to keep us locked here, pretending to be students." Isuke pointed out with another tired sigh. "I just know that we might be here a while, so in the meantime…as roommates.." Isuke awkwardly cleared her throat.

"I'd like for you to..depend me." She finished. Her mouth twitched slightly as she spoke. She gave the impression of being physically pained by her own words.

Haruki looked dumbstruck.

What was the meaning to Isuke's sudden…kindness?

Haruki shook her head.

This wasn't good.

Haruki had learned to shoulder things herself, and to never bother others with her personal problems.

Even though she has quite the significant amount of siblings, she's always felt somewhat alone.

She's been struggling by herself for so long, that she couldn't remember that last time she had the luxury of just relaxing.

The luxury of just doing whatever she wanted without worrying about bringing food to the table.

Not waking up every morning afraid of receiving _that_ call from the hospital.

Haruki's chest tightened.

No.

This wasn't the time to be thinking about what she did or didn't have. It was never the time.

But right now, Haruki felt weak, and Isuke's random burst of concern was the last drop of water to tip the glass.

Drily chuckling, Haruki grabbed Isuke by the wrist.

Her grip was strong like iron.

"Idiot, what are you-"

In one swift movement Haruki pulled Isuke in, and wrapped her arms around Isuke's waist. Tightly embracing her.

Haruki buried her face in Isuke's neck and let out a sharp hollow breath, sending shivers down Isuke's spine.

Haruki's breathing became ragged and intense.

"Isuke." Haruki muttered.

"W-what's wrong with you?"

Isuke, bashfully, tried her best to squirm her way out of Haruki's grip, to no avail.

Haruki placed a gentle hand on Isuke's shoulder, and she let it slide all the way down Isuke's arm, until she reached her hand.

Haruki intertwined her fingers with Isuke's, but Isuke was too busy trying to make sense of the situation, to be able to return the gesture.

Isuke didn't know what to make out of this.

She had never let anyone be at such a close proximity before, well other than her Mama and Papa.

I mean, Isuke has had various partners in the past. But whenever she was with them it had never felt as close, or as…intimate, as being with Haruki right now felt.

Isuke wanted to complain, probably call Haruki and idiot, and demand that she released her from whatever type of assault this could be considered.

But Haruki began to shake.

For a girl with the strength that could put tank to shame, she felt so vulnerable right now.

Sighing in defeat, Isuke returned Haruki's gesture, completely intertwining their fingers together. An unknown feeling began to rise in Isuke's chest.

...Now wasn't the time for this.

"He shouldn't be here." Haruki finally muttered, her lips brushing against Isuke's neck as she spoke.

"What?" Isuke was now doing her best to keep it together, suppressing another shiver.

"He... He shouldn't be here..."

As if it were even possible, Haruki pulled Isuke closer.

"Haruki, you're not making any sense." Isuke breathed, placing a free hand on Haruki's shoulder.

"Hakuto." Haruki had struggled to say his name. "He should be dead… He's supposed to be dead."

Isuke felt her neck slightly dampen.

Was Haruki crying? She couldn't tell.

"What do you mean _dead_?" Isuke asked, slightly frowning. "Who exactly is Hakuto?"

Haruki's breath got caught in her throat.

"My father."

**Authors Note: It's not Saturday, but I just felt like throwing this out there. I'll probably post the other chapter tomorrow! **

**To those who have reviewed, favorited, rebloged in tumblr and followed this story: "Thank you". It's kept me motivated. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Note: This is Haruki's backstory, which explains who Hakuto is. Between the text you will see suspension points, their purpose is to indicate a time laps between the events. If you don't understand, feel free to tell me so that I may either make this easier to understand, or just summarize the events.**

**Chapter 3**

The sky was painted a bright blue, and fresh green grass glistened under the sun. A little girl chased after a butterfly in what appeared to be a local family park. And her red hair, shone brighter than any ray of light.

"Haruki! Lunch time." A gentle female voice called.

The day was perfect for an outing. Laughter could be heard, people walked their dogs, and you could see other families having lunch together.

The Sagae family was no exception to this. Both mother and daughter now sat quietly together in what appeared to be a picnic, under the cool shade of a tree.

"Mom, when's daddy getting here? He's late!" Whined a five-year-old Haruki.

Her mother patiently, and lovingly, placed a perfect sandwich in her persistent daughters' small and hungry hands.

"He'll be here soon." She confirmed with a smile. "He said he'd rush back as soon as he finished some work in the office."

"But-"

Haruki was now in the air. A small yelp escaped her lips as her father lifted her up and kissed her forehead.

"Sorry I'm late, my little flame." The older redhead apologized. Quickly putting Haruki back down. He greeted his wife with a long tender kiss.

"Hakuto, your daughter was getting worried." The older woman commented, looking playfully angry.

A young looking Hakuto sat down, and placed Haruki on his lap, allowing her to return to her simple meal.

"My little flame was worried about me?" Hakuto added, laughing as he ruffled Haruki's hair. Haruki wore a full and disgruntled face.

"Dad, I told you to stop calling me your _'little flame'_." Little Haruki reproached. "Why do you even call me that?"

"What? Don't you know?" Hakuto mused, tightly hugging his daughter. "Because both your hair and spirit burn brighter than any fire."

Embarrassed, Haruki took a big bite out of her sandwich and ran off.

"Thanks for the meal." Haruki yelled behind her, her mouth still full.

"Be careful, sweetheart!"

...

The night was calm, and just like any other average, routine night, Haruki impatiently waited for her dad to return home. Hakuto had a habit of spoiling Haruki, always bringing her candy whenever he came home.

"Mommy! Dad's late again!" Haruki complained, impatiently waiting by the window.

"Well, he's been very busy lately, Haruki. His new job never lets him rest."

"I don't like it!"

"Haha, now now, honey."

The front door opened and an exhausted looking figure walked it.

"I'm home.." Hakuto mumbled.

"Daddy!" Haruki ran up to her father, expecting him to pick her up as he usually did.

Hakuto simply rubbed his temples.

"Not now, Haruki. Daddy is a little tired.." He lightly added. Irritation tainted his tongue.

"But daddy!" Haruki insisted, lifting her hands up.

"I said not now!" Hakuto yelled. His angry voice echoed in the house. "...Excuse me." Hakuto whispered, storming into his study, and slamming the door behind him.

Haruki felt numb. Never in her life had she ever seen her dad raise the tone of his voice.

Much less yell.

Haruki looked over at her mother with pleading eyes, seeking comfort and answers, to no avail.

Her mom looked equally shocked, and worried.

...

The days that followed were the same. No one dared to talk about Hakuto's sudden outburst.

As always he would arrive late, with the only difference that now he would barely greet his family. Hakuto had now become a ghost. Whenever Haruki woke up, he had gone to work, and when she went to bed, he was still at work.

Then only times she would feel his presence were on those late night trips to the bathroom.

On her way to the bathroom she would sometimes hear voices coming out of her parents' bedroom.

As the days rolled by, those voices had turned into audible arguments. Sometimes the sound of objects crashing against the wall could be heard.

Haruki had now made it habit to wake up in the middle of the night, and just listen. She would listen to the arguments and her mother's cries.

And on many occasion, Haruki would cry herself to sleep.

Then one morning, it happened. Haruki had woken up and gone about her usual routine, and made way downstairs for breakfast.

When she descended from the stairs and entered the kitchen, to greet her mother, she was shocked by what she saw.

Fresh cuts and bruises adorning her mother face.

From that moment on, it was clear that she would never get her father back. That things would never go back to the way they were.

A she still didn't know why.

...

"Haruki..Haruki, honey...HARUKI!"

Haruki snapped her eyes open and awakened from her deep slumber. The room was dark. Haruki felt a cold hand shaking her.

"Haruki.."

It was her mother's voice. A little more calm than earlier, but still filled with just as much anxiety.

"M-mom..?" Haruki yawned. "What are you doing? Where's dad?"

"Haruki, listen to me." Her mother's voice was soft but urgent. "I need you to grab your school bag and only fill it with the things you need, understand? Can you do this for mommy?"

Gunshots were heard.

"M-mom.. What's going on? I'm scared.."

"No, don't worry sweetheart, everything is going to be okay, I promise. I just need you to follow my instructions, okay? Grab your bag and only bring with you the things you need."

More gunshots.

"Hakuto you bastard! Get out here and act like a man!" An unfamiliar deep voice yelled from outside the window.

Haruki's mother tightened her shaky grip on her daughter.

"Mom let go, you're hurting me." Haruki's voice came out in sobs. "Why are you and dad acting so weird?"

That was the first and last time Haruki's mom ever slapped her.

After that Haruki had managed to find her school bag within the darkness of her room. As her mother instructed, she only filled it with necessities such as clothing and her schoolbooks.

The rest was a blur.

Haruki was dragged out through the back door of the house, by her somewhat hysterical mother. They ran to the corner of the street and got inside an unfamiliar black car.

"Do you have what you need?" Hakuto's voice was low and intense on the driver's seat.

"Yes." Haruki's mom cried.

"Okay, we're leaving."

"W-where are we going dad?" Haruki shyly asked, frightened.

"Away." Was all Hakuto replied.

As the car drove away Haruki turned around to take one last glance at their house. She saw strange men breaking the door open and running inside. As the car got farther and farther from the scene, Haruki's vision of the house blurred.

The last thing she saw was a man, with distinct white hair, looking after their speeding car.

The events that followed were fast. Hakuto had taken them to what today is Haruki's current home.

It was small, cramped, and a little run down.

He kicked the door open and quickly scouted the house, finally announcing that it was safe. He never looked his family in the eye as he stated that this was their new home. After that he quickly left for the door.

"Where are you going now?!" Haruki's mom desperately yelled after him. She clung to Haruki who was doing her best not to cry.

Hakuto stopped, and without batting an eye, he simply said 'work', and left.

...

Two years passed, and Haruki was now seven and more aware. The situations she was now constantly in had caused her to rapidly mature.

Because of whatever circumstances they were in, her mom was homeschooling her, and they were not allowed to leave the house.

Ever since that night two years ago, Hakuto had gotten more violent.

He would openly beat Haruki's mom in front of Haruki. He was triggered by the simplest of things. Hakuto was now dangerous and abusive.

There were no traces of the once loving father left. Haruki, at some point, had convinced herself that he never really existed. That maybe, she had just made him up to make up for her cruel reality.

She now lived with a fearful mother, and a stranger.

…

One particular night, Hakuto arrived angrier than usual, and began to relentlessly punch Haruki's mom, and throw furniture around.

Haruki couldn't take it anymore. She finally understood, that this man was not her father.

"Hey!" Haruki yelled. She didn't know what she was doing. She just wanted him to stop hurting her mom.

She grabbed a stray umbrella and did her best to hit Hakuto with it. That did it. Hakuto was enraged.

He grabbed Haruki by her hair and slammed her against the wall.

"Leave her alone! She hasn't done anything!" A desperate mother cried.

"She deified my authority!" Hakuto yelled as he began kicking a practically unconscious Haruki on the gut.

"Stop it!" The mother cried, unable to move due to the severity of her own injuries.

That was the moment Haruki felt determination for the first time. That was the moment Haruki decided that she had to become strong. She had to protect what was precious to her.

…

The following nights were all the same, with the only difference that this time Haruki would now stand in front of her injured mother and protect her. Taking each and every punch, without moving a muscle, or batting an eye. Never complaining.

Haruki's mom had always been fragile. But now she could barely move.

Secretly, as injured as she was, Haruki began to sneak out during the night soon after her father would leave.

Depending on how harsh her father had been, she would either have to walk or limp to the nearby construction site.

There she began her intense training at the tender age of seven.

She wanted to become strong; she needed to be strong.

Haruki began doing pull ups on whatever protruding pole she could find. She would attempt to lift up support beams, only to fail. She did push-ups on every surface imaginable.

…

Three years passed. Haruki was now ten, and her body, strong.

Haruki had managed to defend her mother from Hakuto up until then. Sadly her mom grew sick, and that was something that was out of Haruki's control.

Hakuto denied her any treatment.

Haruki's body now possessed all the burns and bruises that she had decided to take in her mothers' stead.

…

Her mother lay in the floor, unconscious. Tonight Hakuto had been ruthless.

Haruki quietly panted. She might be stronger than your average ten year old, but she was still no match for her father in terms of strength and size.

"You two have become a nuisance to me." Hakuto quietly mumbled, tired and now injured from all of Haruki's defensive blows.

Hakuto lowered his gaze, fixing his eyes on the figure of the mother. He reached for the gun that he now always carried with him in the back on his belt.

Haruki's eyes were wide and alert; she had to act fast if she didn't wish to lose her mother.

Without any hesitation, Haruki cut the excess rope that held a chair in its place and lunged at her father. She clung to his back, wrapping her small strong legs around him for support, and wrapping the piece rope around his neck.

She began to strangle him.

Hakuto, now in a panicked frenzy, slammed his back against every surface he could, trying his best to pry Haruki off.

_'..Tighter...'_ she thought to herself.

Haruki tightened her hold on the rope.

_'Tighter!'_

Hakuto slammed his back against a mirror, and finally got a bloody Haruki off.

He grabbed her by the collar, and threw her hard. The force caused her to go through the kitchen door, all the way inside.

"After all I've done for you." Hakuto yelled, slowly entering the kitchen.

Luckily for Haruki, she had crashed against the counter, making all of its contents fall to the ground. Haruki bled, hard. She tried to fix her gaze on what was around her, trying to find something she could use to her advantage.

Laying in front of her, was a freshly sharpened stainless-steal knife, which had just been used to make dinner.

Hakuto's steps got closer.

Now a gun in his hand.

"I'm going to teach you what happens when you disrespect your father."

Haruki clutched the knife.

_'Do it for your mom.. Do it for your family.' _

"You're not my father!" Haruki quickly got up and sprinted forward. Without thinking about it twice, she impaled Hakuto. Drenching the floor, and her hands, in his blood.

**Authors Note: I'd like to curtly thank one of my reviewers for pointing out the fact that Fuyuka does not look seven. I tried best to be as accurate as possible in this chapter, and let myself be guided by the Akuma no Riddle Fan Guide, who according to my tumblr, at some point mentions that she is seven to eight years old. I do not know Japanese so if you guys find something different regarding this kind of information, feel free to send it, I'd be more than happy to re-write the chapter in hopes of giving you guys an accurate experience :). **

**Happy reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Isuke felt Haruki grow pale. And her usually warm hands, were now ice.

What?

Sagae Hakuto...it all made sense now.

Isuke now realized why she hated Hakuto the second she saw him. Other than his obvious cocky attitude, and the superior way he carried himself. He had Haruki's eyes, Haruki's hair, Haruki's grin...

But it all looked wrong on him.

It looked twisted.

Those were things that solely belonged to Haruki and Haruki only.

A brief picture of all the scars and burns that adorned Haruki's body flashed through Isuke's head.

Oh… So that's how she got them.

Isuke didn't notice when or how it had happened, but they were both now kneeling on the floor. She was holding Haruki, the same way you would hold a child after they've had a horrible nightmare.

Truth is, if it had been any other person, Isuke would have forcefully pushed them off, reproaching them about how they had even dared to touch her.

Yet, she was acting so submissive with Haruki.

Haruki who now whimpered in her arms at the bitter memory of her father, who did God knows what else to her.

Isuke was now restraining the urge to find this Hakuto character, wherever he was, and finish what Haruki had apparently failed to do.

She was actually very surprised at the fact Haruki homed such a bright and optimistic personality, after going through what she did as a child.

Under normal circumstances any other person would have ended up either bitter or emotionally unstable.

The again, Isuke wouldn't drop Haruki under the normal category.

Though Isuke would never admit it, she found it was hard to hate Haruki. Even though she could sometimes be a bit of a handful with her sloppy habits and easy-going attitude.

Haruki stirred, breaking Isuke out of her train of thought.

"I remember throwing up as soon as I did it..." Haruki's voice was now quiet, distant and composed.

Isuke didn't know what to do or what to say. Comforting people was just not her thing. She had never felt the need to do so.

She had never cared enough to try.

They both stayed on that position for what felt like an eternity. The room had grown dark, now that the sun had finally set.

"What happened next?" Isuke finally spoke, breaking the silence. Her voice was quiet, careful.

Haruki took a moment to either think or recollect herself.

Maybe both.

"My mom re-married." Haruki simply stated. "Soon after I had _killed _Hakuto, I called the cops. They didn't really question us, they just retrieved his limp body and called the hospital. That's where my mom met my step-dad. He had just gotten a lung transplant and was recovering. After a few outings, they fell in love. And soon after, they gave me a new family with new siblings."

Haruki smiled to herself, remembering how happy she felt when her parents first told her that she was going to be an older sister.

"My step-dads lungs eventually failed him, and he passed away."

Haruki sighed.

"After that my mom's condition grew worse by the day, and she was unable to properly care for her family. So I quit school and stepped in. I didn't want any of us to be separated."

Haruki finished with another small sigh.

"You can figure out the rest from there."

Isuke felt troubled, she now realized that she didn't really know anything about Haruki, and for some reason, that fact slightly bothered her.

The same way it bothered her when she was on vacation with her Mama and Papa and Haruki would suddenly come to mind.

Isuke chanced a glance at Haruki and analyzed the situation they were in.

Under any other circumstances, Isuke would have considered what she was doing with Haruki a woefully pride-crushing thing. She slightly panicked, thinking about how she might be going soft.

Inukai Isuke was not sentimental.

_'Then why does seeing Haruki like this stir me up so much?'_

"You know, Haruki.."

Isuke began, not understanding what it was she was trying to do.

"You're not alone anymore. I mean.. I'm here, so you don't have to carry any burdens all by yourself anymore…"

Isuke struggled with the words, looking confused after the words left her mouth.

"You're not alone." Isuke quietly repeated. Not for Haruki this time, but for herself. As if to confirm that she had in fact just said that. She never intended to say anything in the first place.

Isuke then felt Haruki go rigid and pull herself back, finally releasing her strong hold.

Haruki seemed equally shocked by Isuke's own words, and proceeded to un-bashfully look at Isuke.

The room was practically pitch-black, except for the small amount of light the moon provided through the window, but Haruki was just close enough for Isuke to notice how soft and gentle her eyes had become.

To Haruki, Isuke seemed like a completely different person. Her expression was now calm, almost soft, but at the same time, confused.

She knew that Isuke was capable of love and compassion. What she hadn't expected was that one-day she would ever be on the receiving end of it all.

At that moment, something new and unreadable filled both of them.

Haruki began to feel as confused as Isuke looked. Not knowing what the tightness in her chest was or why her pulse had suddenly quickened.

Why she felt _all weird_.

She wondered if she was getting sick or something.

Haruki slowly brought up her hand to Isuke's face, somewhat perplexed by her own actions, and gently caressed it with her thumb.

"I know." She finally whispered, her voice low and hoarse.

Isuke could see her own reflection in Haruki's eyes; she realized how easy it was to just get lost in those golden pools of open emotion.

But there was something else.

Something in Haruki's eyes that Isuke just couldn't quite read.

Without really thinking, Isuke reached out and swept away a few straggling tears from Haruki's cheekbone, with a gentle finger.

Following Isuke's lead, Haruki gently cupped Isuke face with one hand.

Slightly furrowing her brows, she began to intently look at Isuke. Examining her, as if she was trying to understand something.

Haruki didn't realize what she was doing, or what she was feeling. She felt as if she was looking at Isuke for the first time. Actually noticing her.

Haruki had always acknowledged that her roommate was truly a sight for sore eyes, but this is the first time she had ever been truly captivated by it.

And it wasn't Isuke's beauty alone; she felt captivated by Isuke herself.

Haruki's mind was going blank.

Never in her life had she ever experienced such closeness with someone. Not even with her own family.

Unfamiliar heat and desire began to take over her as she unconsciously began to press her body against Isuke's.

"Isuke...sama?"

"Isuke-san! Haruki-san!" A bright and familiar voice yelled from the hallway.

It was Nio.

Nio started knocking on the door.

"Are you guys in there? It's about time for dinner, the line is going to get long... Oh yeah, and Mizorogi-sensei wants to see you two." Nio persisted.

Haruki and Isuke were frozen on the spot, not knowing what was going on or what they were doing.

Or about to do.

Isuke now felt alert and conscious. It was almost as if she snapped out of some sort of trance.

They were so close, only a few inches part, Isuke could feel Haruki's warm and inviting breath.

"Message delivered!" Nio, sounding quite fulfilled added, and was gone. As if contempt that she hadn't forgotten to deliver the original message.

Isuke quickly got back on her feet, roughly pushing Haruki down in the process.

"W-we should get going." Isuke stuttered, only daring to glance at Haruki before quickly snagging her wallet.

Haruki slightly dazed, finally got up.

"Y-yeah."

Isuke was quick to get her things, and was practically out the doorway.

"Isuke-sama." Haruki called, flashing her trademark smile.

Isuke stopped on her tracks and glanced at Haruki from the corner of her eye.

Taking a Pocky stick out and pointing at Isuke, Haruki's smile got bigger.

"Thanks. Um, for everything."

One second this idiot is a complete mess, and the next she's back to eating her Pocky as if nothing had happened. Isuke couldn't keep up.

Isuke scoffed, doing her best to hide a persistent blush.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. Isuke just thought that it would be inconvenient to have you wallow up in self-pity, since we'll have to live together." She added, afraid that her real feelings might show through her tone, and thankful when it didn't happen.

Turning her back to Haruki Isuke made her way to the door as casually as she could. Giving the perfect appearance of being composed and unshaken.

"Just don't get used to it, you idiot." Isuke finished and was already out the door.

"Wait up, Isuke-sama. No fair, Isuke-samaaa." Haruki yelled after her, clumsily grabbing her own wallet in the process, and quickly dashing out the door after her roommate.

Isuke had already made her way to the end of the hall at a rather fast pace.

'_Something's wrong with me.'_

What was that idiot thinking?

What were we about to do?

Recalling those last few moment with Haruki, Isuke's face felt flushed. She looked at the ground, and clenched her teeth, somewhat angry. Beating herself over the fact that her body was now betraying her.

Making her do things she would never do. Making say things she wouldn't be caught dead saying, and…

Making her feel things she didn't want to.

_'Something's really wrong with me.'_

**Authors Note: Ok, I sincerely apologize for the super short chapter. I've been studying for a chemistry test, so I had to quickly put this together. This week will be pretty busy since I have a few more tests, but I promise that I will do my best to deliver a super long and juicy-angsty-fluffy chapter by Saturday.**

**To those who have pointed it out, yes I'm trying my best to improve my writing. Constructive criticism is always welcomed! The site has been very glitch-y with me, so I can't edit the current chapters and I can't see all of the reviews. So you can PM me about anything, or just leave a review. Hopefully the problem will fix itself soon.**

**Have a nice week!**


	5. Chapter 5: September

**Chapter 5: September **

Today marked the last day of Haruki and Isuke's _punishment_ for skipping Mizorogi-sensei's class.

The day Hakuto had humbly introduced himself; both Haruki and Isuke had abruptly left the classroom, in the middle of a lecture, and never returned.

So as punishment, for the rest of the month they had to make rounds around the campus, to make sure that the _learning environment_ was _adequate_, and that no students were causing any trouble.

The punishment itself was redundant.

They would sometimes find themselves having to patrol the grounds during the night, but their main time to patrol the academy was during class hours. As a result, they were scarcely in the classroom. Not that they minded this at all.

They were now patrolling the school building for the last time. And Isuke couldn't be more than happy to finally be over with the ridiculous punishment.

But on the other hand, Haruki would sometimes show displeasure at the fact that their fun and simple _adventures_ would come to an end.

It was night, and Isuke noted how the hallways of the school building were always so dimly lit. The place always had an ominous aura to it.

Usually the only prominent source of light were the windows during the day, which were just about useless at the moment, since the moon and stars were the only things that lit up the sky right now.

"Hey Isuke-sama, this seems like the kind of grim atmosphere you'd see in a horror movie." Haruki enthusiastically pointed out, lighting her face with the flashlight they always carried whenever they made their rounds during the night.

Haruki had this horrible habit of playing with the confounded flashlight.

The endless 'on' and 'off' clicking of the thing drove Isuke crazy. And this night was no different from the others. Haruki relentlessly toyed with the flashlight. Pointing it around every surface imaginable and making sound effects in the process.

"Why do we have to do this?" Isuke complained, scowling. "It's not Isuke's fault this place lacks staff."

"Ah, come on Isuke-sama, where's your sense of adventure?"

"It's probably lost, along with some of your brain cells." Isuke muttered under her breath, glaring at her partner. She rubbed her temples and closed her eyes, trying to focus on the sound of her footsteps.

Haruki responded with her usual lighthearted laugh, the same laugh Isuke would sometimes consider to be very irritating.

Seriously, Isuke already had to live with this child already. That itself was punishment enough.

"..Hey Isuke-sama."

"What now?"

"Do you believe..in ghosts?"

Isuke sighed.

"What nonsense are you spouting?"

Haruki grew pale, and her were eyes got wide. She half raised a trembling hand and pointed to the stairs that led to the second floor. There was a distinct figure. Isuke couldn't quite make out what it was.

The flashlight shut off.

"Haruki, stop playing around!"

Isuke couldn't see anything now. Her eyes didn't have enough time to properly adjust to the darkness of the hall.

Isuke was seriously getting tired of Haruki's games. How in the world did she ever raise her siblings? She's practically a child herself.

"Haruki?" Isuke tried to focus on her surroundings.

Something felt off. Why wasn't Haruki responding?

Isuke's fingers twitched for her usual weapon of choice, ready for anything. Her instincts were kicking in, as she felt another presence in the dark halls.

_Do you believe..in ghosts?_

Haruki's words echoed in Isuke's head, and for a second she actually felt herself grow cold.

Where did Haruki go?

She couldn't have just vanished, she was just here a second ago.

A loud bang startled Isuke, and in response she swiftly turned around and tried to locate the source of the noise.

"I found some batteries!"

Haruki came into view from the end of the hall and quickly jogged back to where Isuke stood. Who was now shooting silent threats.

"Where did you go?" Isuke finally snapped, doing her best to restrain the urge to shove Pocky down the redheads' throat.

Haruki gestured to the resurrected flashlight in her hand, and smiled.

"I went to get batteries in the other room. It would be inconvenient to walk around in the dark." Haruki slightly patted Isuke back. "Wouldn't want you getting hurt or something, Isuke-sama."

Isuke frowned and rashly brushed Haruki's hand off her.

"Don't touch me." Isuke crossed her arms and angrily shot a scolding look. "Don't just run off like that without saying anything. What are you, seven?"

Haruki scratched her head and a humorous chuckle escaped her lips.

"Sorry to have made you worry like that, Isuke-sama."

"I wasn't worried, you idiot."

"Were you scared then?" Haruki teased.

Isuke bitterly laughed.

She was a cold-blooded assassin. There's no way the dark would have any sort of effect on her.

But there had been something over at the staircase earlier. Just before Haruki's flashlight had gone off. There had clearly been someone else watching them.

And it made Isuke feel uneasy.

"What was that?" Isuke finally asked.

"What was what?"

"The shadow you had originally pointed at." Isuke added, now losing her patience.

"Shadow?"

Haruki scratched her head.

"A ghost, maybe?" She added with a carefree and mischievous smile. Putting her hand on Isuke's shoulder, Haruki's smile broadened. "Don't worry, Isuke-sama. I will always be here to protect you from anything."

"My, what a chivalrous thing to say." Isuke added rolling her eyes and removing Haruki's hand. "And to think I had actually thought you couldn't get any cornier."

Isuke stiffened as she felt an arm encircle her waist and pull her in.

"Every beautiful damsel needs a prince, Isuke-sama." Haruki playfully added with a wink.

Isuke scoffed.

She was always like this- Haruki.

Making passes every time she found the opportunity to. And Isuke hated the fact that they actually had any sort of effect on her.

She was now trying to ignore the spark of heat that the touch of Haruki's hand and sudden proximity sent through her body.

It was bothersome.

Isuke tried to squirm away from the strong hold she was now in.

"Because everyone needs somebody to be there for them." Haruki spoke slowly and hesitantly, squeezing Isuke once and meeting her eyes.

There was something unfathomable about her expression.

"Or something like that." Haruki finished, now with a brighter tone.

Clearing her throat, Haruki released Isuke from her hold.

She was now mentally scolding herself.

She didn't intend to do that. How could she do something so stupid and out of the blue? Why did she do it? Why did she say that?

It's true that ever since she realized Hakuto was still alive, she felt moments of loneliness and insecurity every now and again. But she would manage to conceal it with her usual bright self. She especially didn't want Isuke know how she was actually feeling.

She didn't want to burden her with her own problems and emotions.

But Isuke wasn't dumb; on the contrary, she was sharp. Especially when it came to Haruki.

Watching her and being around her for the past month has helped Isuke figure out when her roommate was feeling off, or when she just wasn't in a good mood. Even if she did a good job in deceiving others, Isuke was no fool.

And it angered her.

It angered her that Haruki was always so focused on helping and considering others, instead of herself. It angered her that Haruki didn't trust her enough to confide her true feelings.

And it pained Isuke when Haruki would smile, but the smile wouldn't reach her eyes. Not too long ago had Isuke told her that she was no longer alone. That she didn't have to carry any burdens by herself.

And it was moments like these that proved that Haruki had yet to open up to Isuke.

_'Though Isuke herself isn't one to open up to people.'_ Isuke understandingly concluded.

Still, she struggled to tell Haruki that it was perfectly fine to let herself feel and complain.

Isuke shook her head, and mentally laughed at her own thoughts.

How ridiculous she felt, actually worrying about an obsessive Pocky eater.

When had she even started to worry? It wasn't like her at all, and that was the most frustrating part.

Now feeling angry with herself Isuke decided that it was time to head back.

"It's not a race, Isuke-sama." Haruki quietly panted, finally catching up. "Why did you suddenly storm off like that?"

"Isuke is tired." She added, not slowing her pace. "And I'm done playing security guard."

And she needed to clear her head, before she kept unnecessarily worrying about Haruki. It shouldn't concern her.

They were now outside, and with the warm welcoming rays of the sun gone, the night had grown to be both unpleasantly and unusually cold.

The wind silently howled and the branches of the trees slowly rocked back and forth in response.

Isuke, for once, felt inconvenienced by her usual revealing attire.

"Kinda seems like the grim atmosphere you'd see in a horror story." Haruki remarked, removing the short sleeved yellow blazer that accompanied her usual uniform.

Isuke rolled her eyes.

This was the second time Haruki had made that comment, but she was right. The night felt off. It was almost disturbing.

"It's not much, Isuke-sama, but it should keep you from freezing to death until we get there."

Haruki smiled, now with Pocky, and offered the article of clothing.

Truly an overly generous act, from an overly generous idiot.

"There's no way Isuke would ever actually wear that disgusting thing." Isuke added with her usual indifferent tone, looking genuinely disgusted as she stared at it.

"Hey." Haruki whined, acting hurt. "It was on sale."

Isuke dismissively sighed, waving a hand.

"Come on it won't kill ya'." Haruki insisted, now with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Too quick for further protest, Haruki playfully put it on Isuke, quickly closing the buttons up. Isuke's struggles were not match for Haruki's obvious greater strength.

Haruki bursted out laughing.

"Get this thing off me, I feel ridiculous." Isuke complained.

In all reality, she looked ridiculous.

Isuke felt a surge of irritation taking over.

This idiot was getting too friendly.

"No, no, that won't do, Isuke-sama." Haruki said between chuckles. "You could be starting a trend or something here."

Isuke shot an irritated glare at Haruki, but her irritation quickly began to subside as she realized how comforting Haruki's blazer was. She no longer felt as cold, that's for sure.

It was ridiculous.

But warm.

Ridiculously warm.

It was almost comforting to wear it. Almost as comforting as having Haruki actually embrace you..

Isuke shook her head and mentally scolded herself for actually thinking that way.

Why were her thoughts rebelling against her lately?

"Whatever, can we just get going now? I'm getting tired of having to deal with you."

Isuke began to stalk her way towards be building that held their room, and Haruki closely followed. Smiling, and resting her hands behind her head.

"Well wasn't that a heartwarming exchange."

A familiar mocking voice commented.

Both Isuke and Haruki spun on their heels, trying to find the source.

"I must say, I did expect more from Eisuke's daughter. I heard you were a cold blooded assassin, but, I guess I must have heard wrong."

Out of the shadows of a nearby tree, Sagae Hakuto emerged.

Haruki felt her stomach drop.

Hakuto chuckled and began to get closer to Isuke, stopping less than a feet away from her.

"Oh, excuse me, am I interrupting something here?" Hakuto added when he noticed how intense Isuke looked.

It's a given that if glares could kill, Hakuto would have already been dead.

"Maybe Eisuke should go find himself another piece of homeless trash. Who knows, with some luck maybe her could raise it better." Hakuto added, indigently smiling.

What was Hakuto doing here?

Isuke brought her hands together and did her best to plaster her usual smile, the corners of her mouth twitching in anger and annoyance.

"My, I don't think you're one to criticize parenting skills." Isuke's countered, her tone was sharp and poisonous. No one was allowed to talk about her Mama like that.

Hakuto brought his hands up and lightly clutched his chest. His face displayed mockery, as he pretended to be hurt by Isuke's words.

"Ouch. Eisuke should really show you how to respect your superiors. Though I don't know what I was expecting, really. You know what they say, mediocrity will only produce more mediocrity."

The acorn doesn't fall too far from the tree. Hakuto's sarcastic tone mimicked that of Haruki's.

Or Haruki's mimicked Hakuto's.

The resemblance between father and daughter under these circumstances was almost painful to acknowledge.

"Hmm." Isuke's tone was almost melodic. "Weird, unlike you, Haruki can actually be a decent human being sometimes."

Hakuto roared in laughter and amusement.

"That's really cute, but last I heard, decent human beings don't kill innocent people." Hakuto's words were directed at Haruki, and they hit her like daggers.

Haruki bit down on her lip and violently forced down her panic, focusing instead on the texture of the ground. She was visibly pained.

She yearned for a distraction. She needed a distraction. Something; anything.

Tension piercing silence.

The wind blew; it was relentless, cold, and hard.

Leaves rustled, branches shook, and particularly Isuke's hair, flew all over the place.

Hakuto, already being so close to Isuke, carefully, and almost politely extended his hand up and gently swept the soft messy bangs out of her face.

"Don't touch her." Haruki quietly snapped, with bitterness, accusation and every other nasty feeling her voice could throw in. But she didn't move.

Never lifting her eyes from the floor, her hands were now shaky fists.

Hakuto arched a brow at his daughters' rudeness and chuckled. He lifted his hands as if he was surrendering and took a step back.

"Why so hostile, honey?" Hakuto asked with derision, once again directing his attention to Haruki.

Haruki didn't respond, she simply narrowed her eyes and shot Hakuto a scornful look.

Hakuto's features twisted in amusement. Raising a hand, he shook a long finger.

"I thought I had taught you better. Are you being selfish by challenging me again? Do you not care about what happens to those around you?"

As soon as Hakuto finished those last words, his eyes quickly flickered to Isuke.

"Well then, this has been wonderfully pleasant, but even I can tell when I'm not welcomed."

Hakuto smiled and gave Haruki a small nod, excusing himself.

"To think that I had hoped for a heart-filled reunion with my daughter after all these years. Daddy is extremely hurt."

Hakuto gingerly smiled at Isuke and grabbed her hand, Ignoring Haruki's protesting eyes.

He leaned down and lightly kissed Isuke's hand, making sure he made eye contact with Haruki in the process.

With more force than that which was actually necessary Isuke snatched her hand back, feeling disgusted at Hakuto's inconsiderate and bold approach. In response, Hakuto simply grinned.

"Now, if you two wonderful ladies excuse me. I have other matters to attend…elsewhere."

And with that, Hakuto was already gone, carefully walking by Haruki, who now looked stiffer than she had been a few seconds ago.

Isuke couldn't help but wonder if it had been Hakuto's presence the one she felt back in the hallway.

It was a quiet walk back to the dorm rooms, and Haruki was sure Isuke could tell something was wrong, but she didn't press on about it.

This was no good.

Haruki tried to block out any type of thought that would make her expose how she was truly feeling. She felt dejected, and confused. When Hakuto had excused himself, he managed to swiftly pass by Haruki, and inconspicuously slip a small piece of paper between her fingers in the process.

And she didn't want Isuke to know.

By the time they were back in the room, Haruki felt sick, sick and half-crazy with dread.

Right now, not knowing what the paper was, she felt her hand burning in unpleasant anticipation as she tightly clutched her fist around it.

Isuke had not been completely oblivious to the exchange or Hakuto's intentions. She noticed how Hakuto purposely passed by Haruki, practically scraping his body against hers as he made his fulfilled escape.

Isuke didn't know Hakuto well, she just knew about him.

She knew about what he was capable of.

He also knew her Mama, and that was enough to trigger both her curiosity and territorial worry.

With the same silence they had walked all the way back in, they both un-verbally agreed to sit down on their cozy couch, feeling rather exhausted.

The couch itself was generously large in size and comfortable enough for two people, even four, but for some reason Haruki and Isuke chose to sit rather closely. Their thighs practically touching as they both became conscious of the others body-heat.

Haruki looked slightly serious and a bit uncomfortable. Her hands were firmly placed on her knees, and her eyes were fixed on the ground.

"Isuke-sama."

Haruki began, finally breaking the silence.

"I'm really sorry about that.."

There was a strange, almost sad note in Haruki's voice, and Isuke sharply looked up, only to see her roommate staring ruefully at the ground.

Haruki, keeping her eyes firmly fixed on the ground, was terrified to look up at Isuke for some unknown reason. Maybe she was afraid that Isuke would see right through her.

Isuke frowned.

She did not like the effect Hakuto had on Haruki. She didn't like it at all. It made her feel even sicker than she already did.

"Why are you apologizing, you idiot? You have nothing to apologize for." Isuke added with a sigh.

"It's just that-"

Isuke closed her eyes and lifted a long slender finger, signaling Haruki to stay quiet.

"Isuke is going to get angry if you start disobeying her orders." She added, tossing her hair nonchalantly over her shoulder.

In response Haruki fell utterly silent, and Isuke swiftly got to her feet.

Haruki still refused to look at Isuke and the sight of Haruki wallowing up in self-pity made Isuke cringe with discomfort.

Knowing this idiot, she probably thinks that somehow running into Hakuto is her fault.

She probably thinks Isuke is hurt because of Hakuto's unnecessary words regarding Isuke's Mama.

And despite reassuring her, Haruki still looked rather pensive.

Haruki quickly got up and finally faced Isuke, her eyes showing traces of newfound determination.

"Isuke-sama." Haruki leaned forward and took Isuke's hand into hers. She sighed and began fiddling with Isuke's fingers.

Isuke raised a confused brow at her roommate, not knowing whether to retrieve her hand or not. She never completely understood the meaning behind Haruki's actions. All Isuke knew was that right now Haruki was putting up her usual stoic front.

Closing her eyes, Haruki slowly brought Isuke's hand up to her face and slightly leaning down, taking in Isuke's scent. Her breath hovered over the hand and that action alone was enough to send shivers down Isuke's spine.

Haruki proceeded to gently brush her lips against Isuke's hand, and she let them overstay their welcome. Admiring how soft and delicate Isuke's hands felt under her touch. Even though she know what those very same hands were capable of.

"Disinfected." Haruki finally breathed, with traces of her usual joviality returning to her voice. Her lips scraped against Isuke's hand in the process.

Haruki opened her eyes and grinned, now looking up at Isuke, but despite her tone, Haruki's eyes still showed traces of worry.

Flushing faintly, Isuke felt her body temperate increase. And all of her higher brain functions seemed to break down.

That alone was enough to make her forget about the encounter with Hakuto.

"What are you-"

Swiftly retrieving her hand, she defensively crossed her arms.

Leave it to Haruki to do something as useless and random at a time like this.

Was this the reason Haruki looked so worked up? Because of some stupid kiss?

"Seriously, Isuke wonders how you are able to constantly hinder her patience."

Isuke managed to muster up the remark in her usual, sarcastic and carefree tone. Her features finally relaxing at the fact that Haruki was returning to her normal self, and wasn't completely affected by her father.

Still Isuke struggled to know whether she should feel anger or relief.

She was usually so kept together. She wasn't the type to get phased over trivial things such as somebody else's touch.

The guys she's gone out with have done much more than just kiss her hand. Yet not once did her head feel as muddled as it did now.

She didn't even care much when Hakuto did it. She had just though it was rude and inappropriate.

This is ridiculous, Isuke concluded, and her heels clacked loudly on the ground as she stormed her way to the sleeping area and went for a towel.

And this can't go on.

"Where are you going?" Haruki asked, looking rather confused, her tone now brighter.

"As tired as I may be, I don't plan on going to bed without taking a bath first." Isuke flatly said. "Isuke isn't some sort of pig." She finished with her usual smile and sarcasm.

Isuke couldn't help but cringe when she felt something tickle her usually bare stomach.

Looking down to find the source, shock and embarrassment were the only emotions displayed on her face when she noticed that she was still wearing Haruki's hideous blazer.

She had walked all the way back to their room, wearing it. The thought alone was enough to kill her.

She quickly began unbuttoning it, and yanked it off. Holding the article of clothing between her fingers for a second. She observed it as if it was some sort of atrocity.

Isuke quickly chucked the article back to Haruki, whose quick reflexes allowed her to grab it before it hit the ground.

"How could you let me walk back in that?" Isuke's usual tone slightly cracked.

"I thought we agreed on you starting a new trend, Isuke-sama." Haruki added, trying to conceal her laughter, to no avail.

Isuke sighed, keeping up with Haruki was just draining sometimes.

Rolling her eyes, she waved her hands as if she was excusing herself and entered the bathroom.

It's not that she didn't like Haruki's company. On the contrary, during their first stay in Myōjō, Isuke had grown quite fond and maybe even a little attached to Haruki.

Though she'd never admit it.

Isuke quickly stopped, resting her hand on the bathrooms doorframe.

"You know, you don't have to force yourself to smile when you're with me."

She gave her back to Haruki as she spoke, embarrassed by her own words.

It was a habit Isuke noted that Haruki had. She would hide whatever she felt behind a pleasant smile.

"Isuke-sama?"

"It's nothing."

Haruki felt relief as soon as the small click of the door signaled that there was now a wall between both her and Isuke.

Haruki slightly frowned at her own feelings.

But right now, she wanted to be alone.

Now that her head was a bit clearer, she remembered the small paper Hakuto had given her earlier.

And it was killing her.

Now that Isuke was in another room, distracted and away, Haruki took this moment to finally breathe. She didn't remember ever feeling so suffocated before. Not even back when she was smaller.

She slumped down on Isuke's bed and stretched, trying to relax her body.

The bed was soft and it harbored Isuke's scent. That was more than enough support right now.

Haruki finally pried her hand open.

The paper was in horrible conditions, crumpled, and the ink looked like it had spread.

Probably due to her sweaty palms.

Which was very unusual. It wasn't really something that frequently happened to her. Sweaty palms meant being nervous. And Haruki was scarcely ever nervous.

Taking in a big breath, Haruki carefully and methodically opened the piece of paper, revealing its contents:

_I'll be waiting in the classroom._

Feeling the room spin for a moment, Haruki forced herself to focus.

Pressing a cold hand against her cheek, she glowered at the ceiling.

Why did Hakuto want to see her?

Haruki took a long shaky breath, and closed eyes. She wondered about all the possible scenarios and outcomes this situation could have.

Glancing at the bathroom door, she wondered on whether she should tell Isuke or not.

Tell her...and then what?

She sighed and covered her face with her arms.

Isuke wasn't a very expressive person. Haruki sometimes found herself struggling to figure out what her roommate was actually thinking. So she didn't know if Isuke would find it troubling to have Haruki confide in her.

Confide how afraid she felt.

If Hakuto was alive there was no guarantee that he wouldn't go for her sick mother, her siblings…Isuke.

Haruki sighed, and felt her resolve beginning to crumble.

No.

She would face Hakuto by herself.

There was no need to drag Isuke into her own problems. Haruki would face Hakuto alone, just like she faced all her other past hardships.

_'Just like always.'_

**Authors Note: As promised, it's Saturday, and here is the chapter. Sorry that it couldn't be long, fluffy and angst-y as I had said. My tests were time consuming. I'd really appreciate opinions, they keep me grounded. Do you think the story is moving too fast? Is it not moving fast enough? Do you want to see more of something? Opinions are nice. Though I'm still going to do things my way. **

**If my part-time doesn't completely exhaust me, I'll try to have the next chapter out earlier this week. Maybe I'll aim for three. **

**As always, Happy Reading, and have a great weekend! Best of luck to those who started working/taking classes.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Isuke jolted upright in her bed.

Her body was damp with sweat and her legs were tangled up in her sheets. This was unusual considering how cold the room always was.

For some reason Haruki liked to sleep with temperatures that would practically instigate hyperthermia. So whenever Isuke fell asleep, Haruki would see it as a chance to help herself to the thermostat, adjusting the temperature to her liking.

Isuke would have to talk to Haruki about that, since she did like to feel her toes after all.

Isuke sighed and rubbed her eyes.

She had been having a nightmare, but was unable to completely remember what it was. She could only recall vague fragments of it.

She recalled Haruki.

In her dream Haruki had been running away from something, and Isuke found herself unable to catch up.

She was frozen in place.

Frozen in place and forced to watch the events that unfolded before her.

Hakuto had been there.

He clutched a knife and wore his sinister grin, as he got closer to Haruki, slowly catching up. Isuke would try to yell, but no words would come. She had been rendered useless. Watching as Hakuto slowly impaled Haruki.

Haruki.

Finally snapping out of her sleepy haze, Isuke twisted her head in the direction of her roommates' bed, hoping to seek some comfort knowing that she was alright.

Empty.

Feeling an irrational spike of panic, Isuke quickly sat up and looked at the clock.

It was two hours past midnight.

Where in the world could Haruki be at this hour?

She was certainly not in the bathroom. Haruki was a noisy one, so Isuke would have noticed if she were in the bathroom or not.

Plus the lights were off.

_'The couch..' _

Isuke got up.

Whenever Haruki suffered from insomnia, she would crash there, hoping for better sleep.

Isuke sleepily walked towards the small living area and peeked at the couch, feeling a pang of disappointment when she didn't see the usual mess of red hair sprawled all over the pillows.

Again, Isuke began to recall her dream, and felt bothered by it.

Not seeing Haruki there made her feel as useless as she had been in the nightmare, not knowing where her roommate was or what she was doing.

Or who she was with.

She took a deep breath and tried to calm her thoughts, doing her best not to jump to conclusions.

Haruki would have no reason to go see Hakuto at this hour. She had no reason to see Hakuto at all, to be exact.

But Isuke saw this as an opportunity.

She now had a chance to unnoticeably get away and call her Mama. She had her own questions that needed answers.

And as much as the thought caused her discomfort, Haruki would just have to wait.

...

Haruki took a deep breath and stared at the closed door, which led to Mizorogis' homeroom.

She had diligently waited for Isuke to fall asleep so that she could manage to slip out of the room unnoticed. She had determined that there was no way in hell that she would ever get Isuke tangled up in whatever Hakuto was hatching.

With another determined breath Haruki opened the door, trying to convince herself that she was mentally prepared for whatever waited for her on the other side.

She wasn't.

"It's bad manners to keep a person waiting, honey. Did your mom ever teach you anything?"

Hakuto's bored voice was the first thing that welcomed Haruki when she finally stepped into the classroom.

"Maybe she would have done a better job if you hadn't decided lose your marbles." Haruki bitterly added with a laugh, forcing her usual smile.

But it looked wrong; the way her eyebrows were furrowed clearly showed her displeasure in being there. And the way the corners of her mouth twitch did not seem natural at all.

She decided to focus her attention on the window, afraid of looking in the direction where Hakuto stood.

She did her best to feign confidence and security. Her original intentions were to drown out any sort of emotion that could try to take over and break her already slipping mask.

But right now, anger, fear, and dread where making their way up. And those feelings wanted out.

Hakuto was leaning against the teacher's desk and released a very loud laugh.

"Well?" Hakuto asked.

"_Well_ what?" Haruki repeated in a lower tone.

Haruki had now resolved that it was best to try and play it safe, by not saying too much.

Convincing herself that it was because she didn't want to lose control of her anger and maybe hurt Hakuto. But in reality, she was actually just afraid.

Afraid of doing anything; saying anything, that might make Hakuto lose his own temper.

Haruki was well aware that the times were different, and that she now was bigger and stronger. But being inflicted fear of her father from such a young age made her keep her words and actions in check.

She seriously didn't want to evoke anything.

"Aren't you going to ask me why I suddenly called you here?" Hakuto tested.

Haruki dryly laughed, and scratched her head.

"I'm more interested in knowing why you're not eight feet underground right now." Haruki's voice was a sharp rasp. Her eyes slightly widened when she realized what she had just said.

_'Damn it.'_ Haruki bit her lip.

She had not intended to say that.

And even though she was terrified, she wanted to say more. She wanted to do more.

She wanted to kill him.

"It will all be explained soon. In due time, that is." Hakuto grinned and raised a brow.

He seemed unaffected by Haruki's response. On the contrary, he looked amused as he further leaned into the desk. He was well aware of the effect he had on her.

Haruki clenched her fists. Her hands were now shaking in cold discomfort.

"What do you want?" She mumbled. Her voice was soft and pleading, and her eyes had now decided to take a new interest on the floor.

"See, now we're getting somewhere. Good job finally making a productive question."

Hakuto laughed.

"Even back when you were little, you always had this horrible habit of making the most useless and obvious questions."

Hakuto's mouth twitch, and for a second, he actually looked somewhat hurt by his own words.

But that didn't last long.

"Why did you change? Why did you do that to us? What happened?" Haruki's questions sounded as desperate as her tone.

Even though the room was almost completely engulfed in darkness, she purposely hid her eyes behind her bangs, so that Hakuto wouldn't see them.

She didn't want him to take pleasure in her pained and now moistened eyes.

Hakuto sweetly smiled. But Haruki recognized it as the same kind of smile Isuke would give whenever she debated to herself on whether she should slice someone's throat or not.

A poisonous smile.

"Ah, no, no, don't get ahead of yourself now. I haven't even told you why I called you here."

"Why did you call me here?" Haruki monotonously asked, disgusted by her conscious and feeble attempt to gain praise by asking. Even if said praise was mockery.

"That's more like it, back to the productive questions. I guess you have gotten better at this." Hakuto encouraged.

Haruki felt as if she was losing her patience, and her emotions felt very unstable. It was taking her everything she had to keep it together.

"You see, _Daddy_ is in a bit of a pinch." Hakuto began moving towards Haruki.

Hovering around her as he talked.

"And he could really use your...assistance. If you may call it that." He added with a dark humored laugh.

Haruki didn't take her eyes off the ground, and focused her vision on her shoes. Still she intently listened to what her father had to say.

If he could even be considered a father.

"Right now some people are, how do I say this, unhappy with my being here." Hakuto pointed out, waving his hands as he talked, as if that would make things any easier to understand.

Haruki couldn't help but bitterly smile at his remark. The edges of her mouth cringing in bitter humor and agony.

_'You have no idea.'_

"Well since you're here, I know for a fact that killing isn't exactly a foreign concept to you." He expressively added, waving his hands again, trying to add effect to his words. "You must know where I'm going with this."

And she did.

"Why in the world would I go out of my way to help you?" Haruki practically spat the words out. Her tone was dark and sour, which still held an undertone of fear.

Tightly clenching her sweaty fists, she drily chuckled and turned her back to Hakuto, deciding that she should leave before anything happens. So that she could get a hold of her fleeting sanity and unstable feelings.

She didn't exactly know whether she felt angry.

She didn't know if she was truly scared either, or if she felt a certain type discomfort.

She just knew that she was done here.

These words, these actions, these feelings, in general were very un-Haruki like, and she was fully aware of this. But you couldn't blame her. She was entitled to feel anger as well as other emotion as much as any other person.

And she was angry with reason.

Doing her best to quickly distract herself from her thoughts, she began to look forward to just getting out of the dreadful classroom and going back to her room.

The thought of going back to her room, back to Isuke, reassured her somehow, and was the only thing that kept her from completely losing it.

"That Inukai girl seems to be quite the catch, don't you agree?"

Haruki stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes, were wide and alert. She felt a sudden sense of panic take over.

"_Isuke-sama_, was it?" Hakuto laughed. "Cute."

He sighed and rubbed his temples.

"Leave it to Eisuke to lack the required creativity to name a child. That horrible name doesn't do her any justice at all, wouldn't you agree?"

Hakuto shook his head, in genuine disappointment.

Haruki gritted her teeth, suddenly feeling weak and dizzy. Doing her best to suppress her unexplainable nausea.

"Leave her out of this." Haruki's words were barely audible. She tightly gripped the doorframe, holding on to it for support.

_'Whatever this is, anyway.'_

"Oh? Did that get your attention?" Hakuto asked, acting surprised.

"What do you want?" Haruki desperately pleaded in a harsh low tone.

"Splendid, looks like we're back on the same page." Hakuto lightly added bringing his hands together, expressing genuine glee.

"I know, I know, you must be wondering if there is any real reason why you shouldn't kill me right here on the spot." He added clearing his throat.

She was.

"But what I'm about to offer may greatly benefit you as well."

Haruki didn't like where this was going. It reminded her of the time he had promised her that it would _greatly_ benefit her family if they were to stay hidden from the outside world.

"How does financial security sound? Hm? I heard that your enormous family was in need of a little charity, and that's why you're working so hard."

Hakuto released a disappointed sighed.

"It's too bad, if only your mother had learned to keep her legs crossed, you wouldn't have to be struggling as much as you are now."

The way Hakuto had said that disgusted Haruki, and it made her replace any type of fear she had with genuine anger.

"Well if you do me this small little favor." Hakuto busily continued. "You will never have to worry about food reaching your Brady-Bunch of a family's stomach."

Hakuto had now moved closer to Haruki. He was practically talking into her ear, and Haruki responded by stiffly staying in place.

He was so close that his scent had triggered a type of unpleasant nostalgia within Haruki.

Hakuto smelled like blood and sweat.

It was a sour metallic combination that was instantly familiar to her from all those years ago. Especially from the times she's had to get-rid of someone in order for her family to eat and get a decent education.

Hakuto smelled like death.

...

The sky darkened overhead, becoming overcast and somewhat gloomy. The air was piercingly cold, and even though she knew this, Isuke had decided to handle her affairs on the roof of the academy's main building.

She looked at the ground and wore a thoughtful expression.

From where she now stood, she had an almost perfect view of Myōjō in general. She had unconsciously chosen that spot in particular in hopes of spotting Haruki wandering around the campus.

To no surprise, there was hardly any activity in the area. Just the occasional night shift officer, or janitor, who would walk by.

Isuke sighed and reached for her pocket, swiftly removing her mobile, automatically dialing an all too familiar number.

She slightly winced when the cold screen of her phone made contact with her ear.

She patiently waited, tapping her heels on the ground, until a soft click on the other end of the line was heard.

"Isuke?" A deep and gentle voice answered.

Isuke faintly smiled.

She never took her Mama nor her Papa for granted, so the way they always answered her calls, no matter how late it was, never failed to provoke a small smile.

She really did love them.

And judging by the sound of his voice, Isuke could tell that her Mama had been sleeping.

"Is everything okay?" Eisuke asked trying to hold back a yawn, now a bit more alert and focused than he had been when he first answered. There were slight traces of concern in his voice, and it was only natural, considering how late it was.

"Everything is fine, Mama." Isuke reassured. With a small, barely noticeable laugh, escaping through her words.

Isuke took a second to think.

She felt the sensation of rocks in her stomach.

For some reason, she had begun to doubt herself. Had calling her Mama been a foolish mistake from her part? Even if he did know Hakuto, what would change? She would just unnecessarily worry her Mama.

But she wanted to know.

She had to know.

"Mama." Isuke's tone was hesitant and careful.

Eisuke lovingly chuckled on the other end.

"What's wrong, sweetheart? Is there anything Papa and I may help you with?"

Isuke heard the soft shift of fabric on the line; her Mama must have sat up.

"By any chance, does the name Sagae Hakuto ring any bells?"

"..."

"Mama?"

"Isuke, are you okay?" Eisuke interjected, now sounding serious.

"Yeah, it's just-"

"Has he done anything to you?" Eisuke's tone had significantly risen in volume. Isuke's usually calm Mama now sounded panicked.

This made Isuke feel taken aback. Was her Mama actually losing his cool? That couldn't be true. She had never seen it happen.

Plus he is always so responsive and collected under any type of situation. Papa is the one who usually worries.

"Everything is fine." Isuke calmly reassured, feeling slightly confused. Now she was sure that she shouldn't have called.

"Isuke was just a little curious is all." Isuke calmly answered.

She made her tone sound as lighthearted and casual as possible, before things got complicated.

"Is he there?" Eisuke directly asked.

"Hakuto?"

"Yes, Isuke, is he in Myōjō?" Eisuke quickened the pace of his speech, wanting to get to the point. He was not being rude he was only concerned.

Of course Hakuto was in Myōjō.

Why else would Isuke have called and asked? She wouldn't ask about someone she's never met or heard of.

"No." Isuke flatly answered.

_'What?'_ She panicked.

Did she just lie to her mama? She had no reason to. Why was she feeling paranoid all of a sudden?

Isuke started to feel very guilty. After all that her Mama has done for her, how could she just flatly lie like that?

Isuke rubbed her eyes in confusion.

She was simply worried. She worried about what kind of chain reaction these events, her phone call in particular, could have.

Her mind wondered towards Haruki.

How all of this could affect Haruki, and what her Mama was capable of doing.

Inukai Eisuke was someone who took his jobs very seriously, and handled them with the upmost professional demeanor.

If Sagae Hakuto was somehow involved in any of his said jobs, things were capable of getting ugly. And if things did get ugly, Isuke didn't know what could happen to Haruki.

"Just curious, Mama." She swallowed. "Isuke just overhead the girl with the scissor fetish talking about him, and wanted to know more."

"So you called this late just to ask about someone you overhead of?" Eisuke was not being sarcastic- he was skeptical.

Skeptical, and with reason.

No person in the right mind would ever call someone at two in the morning just to ask about a person they might have overhead of, unless that person or knowledge was directly affecting them somehow.

So Eisuke was naturally worried, and unsure of his daughters' claims.

And Isuke now saw this loophole in her lie.

But Eisuke never had any reason to ever doubt her, not once; she had never giving him a reason to.

So why start now?

"Yeah." Isuke's simple statement got caught in her throat on the way out. She hoped her Mama hadn't noticed.

"Well I'm already awake, and I guess there is no harm in you finally hearing about this." Eisuke began.

On the other end of the line Isuke heard the small click of a door. Isuke assumed that he must have left his room, so that he wouldn't disturb Papa.

"Hakuto is.." Eisuke's quiet voice continued, he now sounded much calmer. "An old client and colleague, if you can call him that."

"What do you know about him? How are you two related?" Isuke quickly asked, in a quest to quench her thirsty curiosity.

Eisuke laughed at how interested his daughter sounded. He rarely ever saw her get worked up over anything. So this was a surprisingly new side for him. But as amused as he was, he couldn't help but worry over this. If this subject was capable of causing Isuke to call him at this hour, what could have happened?

"A few years back." Eisuke spoke, finally breaking out of his train of thought. "He started hiring our services to get rid of some specific people that were behind his back."

"He was a very sketchy man, always involved in suspicious things and sticking his nose were it didn't belong."

Eisuke bitterly chuckled at the memory for some reason.

"He worked and lived for the sake of wealth, and would go to any extent to get what he wanted. Not to mention..he was..a peculiar one." Eisuke hesitantly added with a sigh. "He...had certain habits and tendencies."

"Tendencies?" Isuke interrupted.

"He was not well in the head is all I'm saying." Eisuke bluntly stated with a laugh.

Isuke felt alarmed.

"So what happened between you two?"

Like her, her Mama had quite the 'relationship reputation' before he finally settled down with Papa.

Isuke's stomach suddenly twisted in knots at the thought that they might have been together at some point.

"One day we just had a little conflict of interest." Eisuke complied.

"Such as?"

"He crossed the line and got involved with the wrong type of people." Eisuke chuckled. "Not that we're any better."

"What exactly happened, Mama?" Isuke was genuinely curios now.

Now she knew that Hakuto did in fact have a direct relationship with her Mama. Thankfully, it wasn't the type of relationship she had previously worried about.

"He wanted me to dispose of one of my usual clients, a big corporation owner. Because they were after his head."

Eisuke said with a hint of glee in his tone.

"As a greedy man, he was very much disliked." He added as-a-matter-of-factly. "At first you wouldn't notice this, because he was usually able to pull off a facade, making him appear...caring, if you can say that.

"So the company owner hired me to finally silence him, since Hakuto had precious knowledge that could destroy the entire corporation, and bring their industries corruption to light."

Eisuke sighed.

"That's when I found out that he had a family."

Eisuke sounded lost in thought.

"I never exactly took him for the type of guy to actually have a family."

Isuke now felt a cold sweat go down her neck.

"My client, the head of the corporation Hakuto was conspiring against, hired me to take care of him and his family, since they could also pose a future threat to his business."

Isuke's phone was now shaking in her hand. Her previous worries and suspicions had been confirmed. Haruki was indeed indirectly involved in one of her Mama's jobs.

"Isuke? Hello? Honey, are you still there?" Eisuke sounded concerned. "It is rather late, you must be tired. We can always have this conversation some other time."

"No, no. Its fine, Mama. Isuke was just thinking a little." Isuke cleared her dry throat. "Please, continue."

Eisuke considered this for a few seconds before he decided to take Isuke's advice and continue.

"One night, after I tucked you in." Eisuke added with a smile in his voice. "I took some of my men and decided to finish the job. The company head, he was offering good money for it."

"Sad to say that I got there rather late." Eisuke sighed. "Hakuto's connections told him about what we were going to do that night, so he fled with his alleged family."

Isuke recalled the day Hakuto had showed up in the classroom for the first time.

How Haruki reacted. Haruki had practically sobbed in her arms and told Isuke about her relationship with Hakuto. A brief summary of her life, up to that point.

She slightly cringed, and bit her lip. She tightly clenched the roofs' railing, which served as a small fence to prevent somebody from falling.

Isuke furrowed her brows at the thought that parts of Haruki's struggles were caused by her Mama.

She clung tighter to the railing, wondering why it was bothering her so much.

Wondering why, for the first time in her life, she felt remorse towards her Mama. Even when she was fully aware of the fact that none of this was his fault, and that none of this should really concern her.

"Mama, what would you do if you knew of his whereabouts?" Isuke boldly asked.

"What do you mean?"

"What would you do if you knew where Hakuto was?"

"I'd finally go and finish my job, naturally." Eisuke sounded a bit perplexed. It was a given that if he ever found out where Hakuto was, he'd go kill him.

"And his family?"

"I'd also take care of them, of course."

"What if… They no longer had any type of connection?"

"Where is this coming from?" Eisuke's asked sounding rather confused.

"Hakuto's family." Isuke cleared her throat. "You said, that the only reason you had to..kill them, was because they posed a threat to this company." Isuke took a deep breath.

Her thoughts felt like a mess, and she knew that she was rambling. But she just couldn't stop. Her brain felt numb and in a haze.

"But what if his family no longer had any connection to him?"

"That doesn't matter, Isuke. I've told you before, in this world, a job is a job, and a reputation is something we must uphold to survive." Eisuke continued. He sounded serious.

"What more do you know about him?"

"For one, my sources say that he feigned his own death and stayed under the radar so that he wouldn't be easily found."

Eisuke's voice was now cold and distant.

"I also know for a fact that his wife is incredibly ill, and that she doesn't have much time left. So by the looks of things I'm planning to let nature take its course with her."

"What about kids? Did he have kids?"

Isuke asked, doing her best to sound oblivious while trying to mask her panic. For once she was glad that her Mama was not there in person with her. If he had been, he would have seen how uncharacteristically anxious she looked.

"Soon after he supposedly died his wife remarried and had quite the significant amount of kids. They do not threaten me in any way and they were not part of the job, but-"

"But?"

"I heard he has a daughter."

_'Shit.'_

Isuke's chest tightened, and she struggled for air.

She usually knew everything about her Mamas past, and future potential jobs. How did he ever fail to mention something as important as this up until now?

_'Because Haruki had never been important.'_ Isuke thought.

And she still wasn't; she shouldn't be.

But there was no denying it anymore. Somewhere along the way, Haruki had somehow managed to become someone who Isuke has come to care for.

And it was only natural, since they're forced to be together twenty-four-seven now.

But somehow that concept didn't entirely make sense to Isuke.

Isuke clearly remembers how she felt a little lonely when Haruki had left the first time, when she had failed to kill Haru. Even if she did constantly deny it to herself.

So that would mean that Haruki had been important to Isuke even before they had returned to Myōjō.

Isuke noticed a particular metallic taste in her mouth.

It was the kind of taste a person would get after they put a key in their mouth. She had been biting hard on her lip all this time, and in response she had slightly pierced it open, welcoming the flavor of fresh blood.

Eisuke's voice abruptly snapped Isuke out of her trance.

"She's young, and I've heard talk about her. Her hands aren't clean. She is a potential threat, and I don't know what kind of relationship she has with her father."

Eisuke tone changed to the one he usually used when he was making business.

"That obviously means that she's somehow involved."

_'What? Haruki? How?'_

"What if she doesn't have any type relation with him anymore? What if she isn't involved in anything?"

"I have no guarantee of that." Eisuke drily stated. "I only know her name."

'Sagae Haruki.'

Isuke thoughts had been in unison with her Mamas words.

Isuke began feeling lightheaded.

In that moment she couldn't hear anything over the roaring in her ears, and couldn't feel anything else other than the pounding in her chest.

"Truth is, Hakuto has a terminal illness, and he's about to kick the bucket. And there's too much of a chance that the Sagae girl could take over for him." Eisuke finished, releasing a worried sigh.

"You don't know that" Isuke breathed

There's no way that Pocky obsessed idiot had any trace of malice in her. Haruki didn't ask for any this. She's just getting dragged into Hakuto's life blunders.

"And that's exactly why we have to kill her."

...We..?

Isuke's phone trembled in her hand, and her blood went cold. Her stomach rolled with a thousand different emotions she currently didn't have the time, or the capacity to recognize.

For the first time in as long as she could remember, Isuke was stunned into dumb inactivity and was rendered speechless.

Her mind was blank, entirely numb from shock and confusion.

"Hakuto knows about you as well, Isuke. Both your Papa and I worry about you."

Eisuke's voice was now soft and gentle in Isuke's ear, but it brought her no type of comfort of any kind.

"By what I've heard and seen, the things this man is capable of are sometimes beyond my own comprehension."

Isuke stayed quiet.

"One of the main reasons the Sagae girl worries me is because I'm afraid she'll come after you, Isuke. Hakuto and I, we are not in good terms."

Isuke wondered why her Mama had ever failed to mention such relevant information to her.

"As your Mama and teacher, I know that you are more than capable of taking care of yourself."

Eisuke took a deep breath.

"But if Hakuto plays his cards right...you could be in danger Isuke. That Haruki girl has a particular reputation around these parts. The things she's done, her reputation alone proves that she's not somebody who should be taken lightly."

"What are you saying?" Isuke breathed.

"If she finds you, she could try to kill you, Isuke."

"Haruki wouldn't-"

Isuke didn't dare to finish her sentence.

Other than the fact that it might give away that she was right now living with a person whom her Mama has been after for who knows how many years, Isuke was feeling unsure.

Someone as stupidly noble and self-sacrificing as Haruki, who obviously hated killing and the assassination business, would never…

Isuke had no concrete proof or guarantee. Other than her wishful thinking, Isuke had no proof that Haruki would not attempt to kill her for whatever reason.

What exactly did she know about Haruki?

Other than small details about her past, what Isuke knew about her roommate was not enough to prove or disprove anything.

If she had done it once, for whatever noble reason, what was stopping her from doing it again?

Isuke thickly swallowed, feeling pained by her own thoughts, and the reality of the situation as it struck her.

"Mama."

Isuke wore a blank expression as she carefully calculated her question.

"Who exactly is Sagae Haruki?" She finally asked, feeling the weight of her own words.

Eisuke was silent, and the weigh Isuke's words lingered in the air. They left a sour taste in her tongue.

She could tell that her Mama was trying to be careful with whatever he was about to say next.

"Someone you should be weary of."

**Authors Note: I really do try to make these chapters long, but I just don't have the talent to drag things out. Nevertheless, I won't give up! Hopefully the next chapter will be out this weekend. I hope this chapter wasn't too hard to understand.**

**Yes, the rest of the Black Class students will soon get their spotlight. I was just waiting for a good chance to begin throwing them in. That time has now come!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"Well, wasn't that anticlimactic." An amused and slightly sarcastic voice complied, gaining Isuke's attention.

Now that she was much more alert to her surroundings, Isuke turned around, attempting to locate the source coming footsteps.

She had been so distracted earlier that she had unintentionally let her guard down, and failed to notice Suzu, who calmly walked towards were Isuke stood, offering a polite smile.

Isuke closed her eyes and sighed, putting her phone back in the safety of her pocket, she felt somewhat relieved that it hadn't been Haruki.

"Isn't it bad manners to eavesdrop?" Isuke retorted flashing her classic annoyed smile.

She mentally scolded herself.

Her Mama had always taught her better.

No matter what kind of problem or situation you were in, you should never let your guard down.

And this fact held more relevance in their world. Since they were, in fact, assassins. One wrong move, one simple distraction, could easily cost you your life.

"Consider it an old woman's privilege." Suzu added, raising a finger up as if to prove her point.

She now stood beside Isuke.

"Well then, isn't it way past your bed time, obāsan?" Isuke interjected, slightly smirking at her own remark.

Suzu decided that she would not humor Isuke by laughing, but she couldn't suppress a smile.

Intently catching Isuke's eyes, Suzu didn't intend to try anything to soften the consistent and penetrating fury Isuke sent her through them.

She was clearly not welcomed right now.

"Who knows? Maybe I'm just waking up." Suzu cheerily added.

Isuke studied the girl for a moment.

Gritting her teeth, her mind wondered towards a new problem. Ignoring her new companion.

She wondered if that phone call had actually accomplished anything. If anything, she probably just aroused her Mama's suspicion to what could end up being a very problematic situation.

"How long have you been here?" Isuke finally spoke, trying to focus her attention on something else other than her persistent and paranoid thoughts.

"Longer than I would have liked, sadly." Suzu quietly added, looking rather deep in thought. She gazed up to the cold night sky, her hair, slightly waving in response to the cool and gentle night wind.

"You know that's not what I meant." Isuke answered much more coolly now, failing to suppress another uninvited and tired sigh.

Somewhere within this small and insignificant exchange, Isuke had lost any type of agitation and discomfort she had gained over her phone call with her Mama.

The wind had also helped her cool her head.

Ironically, now that her head felt much clearer, she now wished that she could once again feel the anger and resentment she had felt no less than five minutes ago.

Because Isuke preferred to feel anger or confusion over the lost and empty feeling that had now settled in place.

"The same answer applies in both cases then." Suzu finally answered, smiling and turning to face Isuke.

"How annoying."

Isuke complained, stretching her hands out, and giving Suzu her back.

"Just when Isuke thought she could finally get some alone time." She dismissively added, waving her hair.

With that being said, Isuke determined that she should play it safe and head back. She didn't want Haruki to come back and find out that she had left in the first place.

Though right now, Haruki was in no position to interrogate.

And more than anything, Isuke was uncomfortable with her classmates' sudden presence.

She wasn't worried about how much Shutou knew. She was more worried about the fact that Suzu might have seen her look anxious, and even worried.

In a sense, that made Isuke feel naked.

"That's rather strange. I thought Haruki-san was the only one of us which whom you could actually get along." Suzu's eyes had calmly moved to Isuke, she slightly tilted her head and flashed another smile.

Isuke yawned, and looked at her nails. Managing a bored expression, she shifted her weight against the small railing, and crossed her arms.

"Isuke can only tolerate that foolish idiot for so long."

Suzu laughed at the remark.

"_Only death can cure a fool._"

Isuke blinked and looked rather taken aback.

"At least that's what my mother would always say." Suzu quickly added, now leaning her back against the railing as well.

Isuke rudely scoffed.

"Then Isuke would have to guess that you have no remedy."

Isuke looked rather perplexed. Not understanding how Suzu's remark had worked something in her stomach that made her feel sick.

Isuke excused herself and decided that it was time to return for the night.

"As true as that may be..." Suzu dismissively added, her voice trailing off.

She looked after Isuke's fading figure, and weakly managed a smile.

"In the end." Suzu's voice was soft and apologetic. "Aren't we all fools?"

Isuke walked in large, fast, strides. She now worried about what exactly Shutou knew, and if so, how much she knew.

Being immersed in her thoughts, Isuke had barely taken note of her little trip and felt slightly surprised with herself when she found herself in front of the room door.

She cautiously opened the door, and tried to be as quiet as possible. Just in case Haruki had already returned from whatever thing Haruki's did at three in the morning.

She tentatively walked in, half-expecting Haruki to appear.

But there was nothing; No sign of life at all.

Since returning to Myōjō, Isuke had begun to suspect that Haruki was enjoying some sort of double life.

Although that phrase might be an overstatement – what Isuke had intuited was more of a hidden aspect, an interior world, as yet insubstantial and undefined.

Isuke did not take pleasure in the idea.

It meant that there were things about Haruki that she had yet to figure out.

_'Probably some sort of Pocky Cult.'_ Isuke tried, humoring herself. Convincing herself that she had probably worried over nothing.

What had only been practically an hour of events, felt like months to Isuke, leaving her completely drained.

She gently shut the door, and felt somewhat ashamed at the fact that she had to be discreet in her own room. The fact that she, Isuke, had to be discreet in consideration to others at all.

Taking a deep breath, relaxed, and burning with righteous determination, she took a step forward.

Jumping in surprise at the loud sound of her own heels against the floor. She couldn't suppress the glare that followed.

Isuke decided that it would be best to remove her heels.

Swiftly doing so, she slowly tip-toed her way to their sleeping area, resting her weight against the wall and daring to steal a glance at Haruki's bed.

It was still empty.

Sharply exhaling the breath she had long been holding in, Isuke loudly dropped her heels on the floor. Her now bare feet automatically took her in the direction of Haruki's empty bed, instead of her own.

Closing her eyes she decided to rest.

Even if it was just for a few seconds, she laid down on Haruki's cold and welcoming bed.

But Isuke knew better than to just stay in Haruki's bed. How would she explain her actions if Haruki would suddenly decide to wonder in?

She sat back up, and twirled a strand of her hair, feeling the space where Haruki should be sleeping with her hands. She slowly caressed the spot with a soft and melancholic look.

She sighed.

Haruki's empty bed reminded her of the time when Haruki left Myōjō.

How lonely she felt that night.

And how she was so sure that she would never come across the annoyingly and overly friendly Pocky eating red head again in her life.

Laying back down on the bed, Isuke tilted her head only to be received by Haruki's scent, and it bothered her how well she knew it.

How somewhere deep inside, she longed for it to the point of internal discomfort.

Yet, redundantly so, it also brought her comfort. Even making her feel less lonely.

Clenching the soft sheets between her fingers, Isuke looked down at her own bed across from where she sat. She wondered, if this was what Haruki saw whenever she would wake up in the mornings or late at night.

That thought made Isuke feel more self-conscious of her sleeping habits. What if she snored? Or worse. What if she drooled?

Now the she was in the process of a cheap self-evaluation, Isuke recognized the fact that she herself had quite the difficult character. So it was only natural for her to feel surprised by the fact that her current roommate had been so patient with her.

Isuke now felt sullen.

How Haruki didn't grow tired of Isuke so quickly...

The sound of a tree branch against the widow brought Isuke back to reason and pulled her out of her train of thought.

Without noticing she had once again flopped herself in the bed. Except this time around her head was resting in Haruki's pillow.

Quickly getting up, Isuke felt slightly disgusted by her own unconscious actions.

Had Haruki been there, Isuke wouldn't have ever heard the end of it.

Haruki.

Isuke quickly got back to her feet, and scanned the room.

Haruki had yet to return.

"Guess that idiot can't be helped." Isuke muttered to herself.

She was too tired to change back into her sleeping wear, so she was contempt with just removing her black leather jacket and going to bed.

Removing the article of clothing, she tossed it on the ground. The room being as dark and dim as it was, Isuke had not seen were it landed. Shaking her head and waving a hand, she reasoned that she could worry about it in the morning.

Isuke closed her eyes, and opted to rest.

She hoped in her bed and pulling the sheet over her.

Even if there were only a few hours left before their morning class, it would have to do.

But to no surprise, sleep eluded her.

Isuke waited in agony and in vain for any sign of Haruki's return. Her thoughts were too awake and loud in her head to allow any form of rest.

She forcefully closed her eyes shut, and hoped for the best. But for another hour, it was nothing but one insomnia battle after another.

Isuke kept tossing and turning, and Haruki still hadn't returned.

That's when the soft and almost mute click of the door made Isuke's eyes flutter open.

She could hear her heart pounding in her chest.

It was obviously Haruki because she was the only other person with a key that would grant access to the room. Well there was also Nio, but what kind of business would she have at this time?

With the same speed she had opened them, Isuke quickly closed her eyes.

As much as she wanted to confront Haruki about her whereabouts for the past three hours, her fear got the best of her.

She played a small facade, giving the impression of sleep. Doing her best to look and act as natural as possible, and keeping close tabs on her breathing pattern.

Haruki was entering the room with the same amount of caution Isuke had first entered with.

She struggled to suppress a pained groan after she hit her head against the frame of the wall which separated the living room from the bedroom. Haruki had been outside for so long that her eyes had not adjusted.

She quickly glanced at Isuke. Hoping that her little accident hadn't woken her up. And to no surprise, Isuke looked completely asleep.

Haruki considered Isuke a very heavy sleeper, because whenever she couldn't sleep, Isuke wouldn't wake up even after all the noise Haruki would usually make.

But Isuke knew of Haruki's little night parades around the room. Haruki was indeed, very loud. Even if she did try to disguise it.

Isuke just didn't care enough to get up and ask Haruki is she was ok or if she needed anything. Or if she wanted to talk about why she couldn't sleep.

Well, she did care actually, she just wanted to conserve her image.

Haruki felt slightly confused when she noticed how her bed sheets were even more of a mess than the way she had left them. Or how her pillow was suddenly on the floor.

Haruki scratched her head.

_'I have to be more careful with my things.' _

She quietly walked to her bed and bent down, gently picking up the fallen pillow.

She glanced at Isuke, her gaze was tense and penetrating.

Isuke did her best to try and not stir under her roommates inspecting eyes.

Getting up, Haruki and walked to Isuke's bed, and sat down just next to her. This time around, Isuke didn't move under Haruki's eyes.

Haruki slightly smiled, and chuckled.

Contrary to her rough exterior, Isuke would sometimes look her weakest and most open during sleep.

Haruki wondered if she was some sort of creepy stalker for noticing these things.

It's only natural to somewhat know your roommates habits by now. The same way Chitaru would know Hitsugi's and vice versa…

Or something like that.

Haruki arched a brow when she noticed how strange and tense Isuke looked this time around; not her usual adorable sleeping self.

Haruki gazed at Isuke, her expression was hard, unperturbed, but tranquil.

"Hey, Isuke-sama."

_'Shit, she knows I'm awake.'_

"Have you... Have you ever found yourself in the position where your morals and values had to be purposely corrupted in order to gain something?"

_'...'_

Haruki slouched down and gently move closer to Isuke. There was a clash between their own body heats.

"What if, in the process of gaining it, you lose yourself along the way?"

Haruki's voice was practically in Isuke's ear. A barely audible whisper.

"What if, that something's isn't worth it, but at the same time it is?"

Haruki tightly clenched her fists against Isuke's bed sheets. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"..What if..instead of just losing yourself, you'd lose something of much more value." Haruki gently muttered, finally opening her eyes.

She affectionately brushed Isuke's cheek with her hand as she spoke. Her voice, gentle and kind in her ear; her body was soft and warm.

Isuke almost cringed at the sudden touch.

Peeking through half-close eyes, Isuke saw that Haruki was staring down at her. Her gaze, moist, penetrating and her expression was contemplative.

Her hands, were soft against Isuke's cheek, as she continued to gently brush her palm against the _sleeping _girls face. Softly caressing with her thumb.

Haruki's touch was light, and in a way, it was familiar, almost conforming.

And Isuke hated it.

She hated it because she didn't deserve it; because she had called her Mama, and in the process actually began to doubt Haruki. For some reason, that thought alone was enough to hurt Isuke.

The thought that her relationship with Haruki was so surprisingly fragile, that at her Mamas words, Isuke began regard Haruki in an unfamiliar way.

Isuke swallowed hard, mentally cursing herself.

Haruki couldn't be that much if an idiot. She was bound to notice that she was awake.

Isuke's thoughts were interrupted by Haruki, who softly smiled and traced a line with her index finger from Isuke's upper face, all the way down to her neck.

As Haruki did this, Isuke shut her eyes tighter for a moment.

Only allowing herself to feel the softness of the light touch Haruki's finger provided on her skin. The sweetness of the sensation was intoxicating, and it sent shivers, which Isuke struggled to suppress.

After the sweep of guilt Isuke had felt after calling her Mama, and in particular, after Suzu's comment, Haruki felt like a salve for her nerves. Even if, in a way, she was indirectly the direct cause of it.

"I.. I promise you." Haruki began, slightly stuttering.

She looked down to where Isuke's limp hand rested in the bed and tentatively picked it up, giving it a brief squeeze.

She brought it all the way up to her face and unbashfully inhaled Isuke's calming scent.

Haruki then rested her face on the back of Isuke's hand and gently twisted it until her lips reached Isuke's open and inviting palm.

Haruki furrowed her brows and closed her eyes.

"I won't let him hurt you."

Her lips brushed against Isuke palm while she muttered the somewhat strained sounding words.

For the first hour after Isuke woke up the next morning, she could do absolutely nothing except lie paralyzed in her bed drifting back and forth between consciousness and unconsciousness.

She eventually found herself completely waking up to the bothersome rays of sunlight that entered through the window, and hit her eyes.

Covering her face with her hand, she groaned.

Her head was pounding and she felt overly groggy.

Her bed had never felt as inviting as it did today.

Slightly uncovering her eyes, so that the light wouldn't strain her as much, Isuke looked at the clock and noticed that she had woken up twelve minutes before the set alarm would go off.

Isuke sighed and reluctantly sat up, easing her messy curls into place, she tiredly looked over at Haruki's bed, and felt relief when she saw messy red hair sprawled all over the opposite bed.

Isuke deeply frowned. She didn't notice when she had fallen asleep last night.

She wasn't exactly planning on it.

Remembering how Haruki had unbashfully taken her hand into hers and idiotically thought that Isuke had been asleep. Isuke tried to suppress a flustered and embarrassed feeling that was making its way up.

Closing her eyes, Isuke rested her face on her hand and released a heavy sigh.

Leave it to Haruki to actually be dense enough to think that even if Isuke really had been asleep, she wouldn't have woken up by her talking.

Isuke took her pillow into her arms and glared at it, deep on thought.

She wondered why in fact Haruki even needed to protect her.

And from what?

Isuke hugged the pillow against her chest, and stayed within her thoughts for a few minutes. Not knowing or understanding what was going on around her made Isuke feel agitated.

The alarm went off, and Isuke jumped in surprise. The loud beeping of the small clock didn't help Isuke headache at all.

Rubbing her temples, Isuke glared at the alarm, as if that would be enough to turn it off.

Hearing the light rustle of fabric, Isuke turned her attention to Haruki, who was now sleepily moving in her own bed.

"Mmm..Isuke-sama?" Haruki groggily stated, finally waking up, and turning her attention to Isuke. Haruki's eyes were tired, and Isuke noticed how they had small dark bags under them.

She sat up in her own bed and rubbed her eyes, smiling.

"Good morning, Isuke-sama."

"Shut up, you idiot." Isuke blantly stated, frowning, and throwing her pillow across the room, landing a hit on Haruki's face.

"What was that for?" Haruki whined.

"Your face irritated me." Isuke stated, crossing her arms and looking away.

Haruki chuckled and stood up, stretching.

"I don't think that's a valid excuse, Isuke-sama." She mumbled within a yawn.

Isuke hurriedly got up herself and began to go about her morning routine.

Haruki sat back down on the bed and scratched her head. Making her messy hair, messier.

Isuke began shuffling through her drawer for a change of clothes.

Studying Isuke's every move, Haruki followed her around with her eyes.

Isuke sighed.

"Could you not do that?"

"Do what?" Haruki innocently pouted.

"The staring, stop staring. It's annoying. Don't you have anything else to do?"

Lately Isuke found herself being especially mindful of her actions around Haruki.

Haruki stuck out her bottom lip and pouted.

"I can't help it, your morning beauty is blinding. Seeing Isuke-sama in her natural state is a morning treat."

Isuke rolled her eyes and slammed her drawer shut.

"Whatever, just go get ready." Isuke dismissively added as she entered the bathroom, firmly closing the door behind her.

She leaned against the door and frowned. How was she supposed to bring up last night to Haruki?

In the meanwhile Haruki looked at the closed door and worried herself on how she was going to keep her oath to Isuke. She got up and walked to the window, leaning against it and soaking in the warm morning sun, releasing a heavy sigh.

Haruki resolved that she would go for a jog before class, to clear her head.

Pushing her body to her limits, Haruki ran another lap around the campus track. She decided that she would stop counting them after she made her hundredth one.

Fresh sweat trickled down her forehead and all the way to her neck.

Haruki liked to run. She liked to exercise in general. Ever since she was a kid, she considered it her escape from reality, giving her a few moments just to herself.

Noticing that her breaths were getting sharper, colder and tighter, Haruki opted for a small rest, before her legs completely gave out.

With less energy than she had originally began with, Haruki jogged her way to a nearby water fountain and drenched herself in the cool and refreshing water. Reaching for a towel she wiped her face clean, and smiling to herself when she noticed how her body was aching.

To Haruki, if your body burned after a workout, that means you did it right.

"You're working hard as usual." A calm and polite voice grabbed Haruki's attention.

Her smile widened when she recognized it, and swiftly turned around.

"Yo." Haruki waved in greeting with her casual carefree attitude. "I knew that I'd probably run into you."

"Well, to be honest, I was sort of expecting Azuma." Chitaru confessed, leaning down herself to take a refreshing sip of water.

Like Haruki, she also enjoyed morning walks and general exercise.

Haruki leaned against the fountain and examined her classmate.

Chitaru was the type of person who always had mature and pleasing aura around them. A calm air.

"How are you feeling?"

Haruki inquired, raising a brow.

"Isuke-sama had mentioned the…small incident that happened a while back." Haruki rubbed her neck as she spoke, carefully picking her words. She was not sure whether what she asked was an appropriate question or not.

Not exactly a good way to break the ice.

Chitaru looked quiet and thoughtful, which made Haruki regret her insensitive question.

"I'm fine now." Chitaru assured with a smile. "Just not as strong as I used to be." Looking away with a somewhat distant look. "The doctor said that it might take a while before my system starts functioning properly by itself."

Haruki raise a brow at this, slightly confused. She wanted to inquire more from her classmate but was afraid of pushing such a sensitive subject.

Taking note on this Chitaru decided to elaborate on what she said, to relieve Haruki from any confusion or misunderstanding.

"I have to go get regular check-ups. The incident... Um.. Caused my body to just shut down. I have to take pills so that my organs can keep on working, since they can no longer function by themselves." She added with a small and polite laugh.

Chitaru took another sip of water before continuing.

"Myōjō is paying for my treatment, so I don't have anything to worry about at the moment."

Haruki felt dumbstruck.

"How.. How does Kirigaya feel about all of this?"

Chitaru sighed, slightly shrugging.

"She still feels horrible about the whole thing. Everyday, she apologizes for it."

Chitaru quietly added, her tone held traced of sadness.

"Her guilt doesn't look like it will subside anytime soon. When the doctor brought news of my condition the first time, she wouldn't stop crying." Her eyes looked melancholic and sad as she remembered the events of those days.

Haruki ran a hand over her face, clearing her throat.

They both stood there, quiet for at least a good minute.

"I'm sorry." Haruki finally spoke, looking at the ground.

Chitaru laughed, brighter now, putting a strong but gentle hand on Haruki's shoulder.

"Don't be, we'll all have bumps in our lives. You just have to keep in mind that those little obstacles don't last forever. They will only last as long as you allow them to. And if anything, when they're over, you come out stronger and wiser than you had been at first."

Releasing her hand, Chitaru closed her eyes and stretched.

"They help you grow as a person."

She offered.

"And make relationships stronger." Putting her hands on her hips and giving out a determined aura, Chitaru looked better than she had been when they first started their conversation. Refreshed.

Haruki could do nothing more than stare in awe at and feel overpowered by her classmates surprising wisdom and maturity.

Most people would curl up into a ball and wallow up in self-pity if they had gone through what she did. But instead she decided to turn the other cheek and be the better person, offering her forgiveness to the other party.

"So, what's preventing you from living the life you want to live?" Chitaru asked, staring directly at Haruki as she spoke.

Haruki blinked.

She truly was not expecting that.

"What do you mean?"

Immediately, Chitaru realized that this was far too obvious a strategy. She immediately stiffened and laughed, and asked what kind of question that was. Though Haruki's obvious discomfort might in fact be a further clue.

"You look troubled." Chitaru added, slightly frowning. "Thought there might be something going on."

"Oh."

With Chitaru it had been one surprise after another.

Haruki began to wonder how different her relationship with her classmates would have been if they had all met under different circumstances.

Right now, she felt taken by Chitaru's charm, and surprised at how wise she was.

What if her other classmates were just as good and had their own particular qualities that Haruki just couldn't notice because of the situation they were in.

"Tell me what's wrong." Chitaru softly said.

Haruki couldn't do anything other than laugh.

"I guess you could say that I'm going through my own particular obstacles right now." Haruki looked away as she spoke. Feeling embarrassed that she had been seen right through, and not knowing if it was ok to talk about it.

Chitaru noticed this.

"Hm, well I guess I won't pry on the details, but.."

"Guess you could say I have daddy issues." Haruki humorlessly summarized, leaning her head back and looking at the clouds.

Chitaru followed the other red heads lead and decided to glance at the clouds herself.

They exchanged another small, comfortable, silence.

"You know, it's funny." Chitaru voiced within the silent exchange, gaining Haruki's attention. "While I was in the hospital, I realized that, right now, your problems may seem and feel like the end of the world, but when you truly stop to think about it, after you evaluate yourself, you come to the conclusion that the world is huge and filled with people who have their own life struggles."

Haruki nodded at her words. Attentively listening. Understanding what she was trying to say.

Chitaru closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"I'm not saying that what you're going through is less of a priority, but what guarantee do you have that this is the toughest challenge you'll ever face?"

This fact hit Haruki like a pack of bricks. She started at Chitaru, attentive and wide-eyed. Soaking in her well-intended words.

"And it doesn't help if you're battling alone." She finally finished.

Haruki frowned.

"Does Inukai-san know?"

Haruki's frown deepened in thought, and she turned her eyes to the ground once more.

"I'd rather she didn't." Haruki spoke, her voice came out in an unintentional rasp.

Chitaru sighed.

"Why would that be?"

"She's kinda involved..I guess." Haruki hesitated.

Was it really ok to be telling her all of this? I mean, Haruki wasn't going into details or elaborating much on her problem, but letting a stranger know seems kind of like a stupid move.

Flopping down onto the ground, Haruki stared up at the sky again.

Chitaru politely sat down next to her.

"What's your relationship with Inukai-san?"

This question took Haruki by visible surprise. She looked at Chitaru, confused and, for the first time, slightly uncomfortable.

Haruki's nervously laughed.

"What do you mean?"

Chitaru was not an oblivious person so she leaned back and gave an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry, that was an inappropriate question."

Haruki closed her eyes and waved her arms. Gesturing that it was fine. She laughed and played with the towel in her hands.

"Its fine, it's just that the fact that you would ask something like that took me by surprise."

Chitaru blushed, embarrassed, and looked away.

"Well, we're roommates." Haruki finally spoke, sure of herself. "And...ah..friends?" This time she didn't sounds as sure.

Were any of them really friends?

Chitaru chuckled and covered her mouth as she did so, trying to suppress the sound.

"I'm sorry, it's just that I had assumed otherwise."

Haruki looked at her companion and tilted her head, showing clear and visible confusion, being completely oblivious.

"Putting complications aside." Chitaru continued, still somewhat immersed in small, light, laughter. "How..um..comfortable, do you feel around Inukai-san?" She looked away as she said this, struggling to find the appropriate words.

Haruki brought a hand to her chin and looked thoughtful, not quite understanding where the question was coming from.

Well, how comfortable did she feel around Isuke-sama?

Well she had cried once in her arms, and putting the situation aside, it did fell pretty nice.

And whenever she had a bad day, going back to her room to Isuke did make her feel better.

The slow pleasure and small pulses of intense excitement she felt at those times seemed very much like happiness. And while a small part of her was embarrassed that her apparent problems could have been brushed off so quickly, like crumbs from a dense, stale cake, she was sufficiently relieved that Isuke was the reason why.

After thinking about it, Haruki absentmindedly cracked her knuckles and smiled.

"Pretty cozy, I guess." Haruki concluded, making eye contact with her companion.

Chitaru could no longer suppress her amusement and openly chuckled. She got up and offered a helping hand to Haruki, who kindly accepted.

"Well, if you truly feel that way. Why not have a chat about how you're feeling with her? Maybe then you'll also come to realize something else. Maybe how comfortable you really do feel with her."

Haruki laughed and released Chitaru's helping hand.

"I can't keep up." Haruki confessed, not clearly understanding what her classmate was saying.

"Or maybe I just read too much in the way you two look at eachother.." Chitaru quietly added to herself, her voice trailing off as she spoke.

"Huh, what was that?"

"Nothing, you'll figure it out.. Both of you."

Chitaru grabbed her own towel, which she had earlier left out to dry on-top of the fountain.

"I hope you're able to sort out whatever dilemma you're facing, Sagae-san." Chitaru finished, excusing herself with a small nod.

With a weak, sheepish laugh, Haruki shook her head. And waving a hand as she watched her classmate jog away in another direction.

She wasn't sure about what had just happened, but she sure did feel a lot better.

_'Maybe I should talk to Isuke-sama about it.' _

Thinking back to Chitaru's words Haruki laughed, and began to jog back to her room.

_'Maybe I'll figure out whatever it is I need to figure out.'_

**Authors Note: I'm so sorry for the roughly written chapter. I myself recognize this lazy job-of-a-chapter. I've been busy with tests and had little editing time. It'll get better and less sloppy, that much I can promise. See any mistakes? Point them out~**

**If you notice too many mistakes to the point of discomfort (it's ok, it happens) don't keep it in, let me know. If that's the case then I'll just postpone the next chapter, take this one, and completely re-master it (or something).**

**Um, I don't know if this is an inappropriate question, but I'm just going to bluntly ask: Do you guys want a sexy scene in the future? (I censored myself). It's just that I've gotten different points of view on this matter, and some people say yes and others say no. So I'd like to hear your voices and take on this.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

In the lunch room, the roaring sound of the morning crowd was much more bearable to Isuke than that of the afternoon.

Each individual face was telling a different story; some exciting and others, less energetic.

And then there was Isuke who tiredly idled with her breakfast, yawning.

She looked around and noted how every person had their own bypass system already established. This ranged from the repetitive clicking of the people who were texting to the soft murmurs of conversation within the room.

Isuke looked at her plate, her food had barely been touched.

She wasn't really hungry or much of a breakfast person, but when she had emerged from the bathroom earlier, Haruki had disappeared.

Only leaving a small note on Isuke's bed explaining her whereabouts.

Glaring at the fresh scrambled eggs on her plate Isuke concluded the she indeed had to put a bell on Haruki.

_'Or a leash.'_ She thought, snickering to herself and finally taking a bite of her food.

"Well, what's got you all chipper so early in the morning?"

Isuke rolled her eyes, quickly grabbing a napkin, she spat her food in it.

"Better safe than sorry." Isuke passively added, finally making eye contact with Hitsugi, who stood on the other side of the table.

"You're not exactly a likable person, are you, Inukai-san." Hitsugi lightly giggled. "Just kidding."

"Duly noted." Isuke replied, loudly dropping her fork on her plate.

They exchanged a good minute of silent stares. Challenging one another.

"What's with this hostility so early in the morning? I really see no reason as to why we shouldn't be able to get along." A tranquil voice offered, gaining both Isuke's and Hitsugi's attention.

Sumireko pulled a chair back and settled herself next to Hitsugi.

Her flawless skin, and soft complexion held traces of particular displeasure soon after she sat down. She uncomfortably shuffled in her chair.

"I really must praise you all." Sumireko sighed, giving up. "It's sometimes beyond my comprehension how people are expected to eat in these hard stacks of metal and plastic they call 'chairs'."

Isuke leaned into her hands.

"Maybe we're not all as _fragile_ as you, Ojou-sama." She teased with a malicious gleam in her eyes.

Sumireko brought her own hands together.

"Are you trying to starts something, Inukai-san?"

Their table grew a piercing tension.

Hitsugi quietly observed her classmates. Anticipating the events that were to come.

"H-Hanabusa-san.." A quite voice stuttered.

Mahiru held a small silver tray which contained a beautifully detailed tea set.

Smiling, and still sitting, Sumireko pulled the chair next to her back, and patted the spot. Gesturing her timid roommate to sit.

Without making any eye contact whatsoever, Mahiru placed the tray down on the table, and sat herself down.

"Hmm." Isuke hummed. "Having a lackey must be convenient, Isuke feels jealous." Isuke indifferently said, crossing her legs.

"Ah-um, no.. I..I offered." Mahiru explained, her voice had grown quieter as she spoke.

Isuke began to shake her leg and glanced at Sumireko, grinning.

Sumireko did all but shoot actual daggers at Isuke with her eyes.

"You're not one to talk, Inukai-san. When you have a little whipped mutt yourself." Sumireko boldly stated, maliciously grinning and giving Isuke a penetrating look.

She was losing her patience.

The fact that this little spoiled, rich, brat had actually referred to Haruki as a dog, no, a mutt, immensely bothered Isuke.

Isuke sat back on her chair and furrowed her brows.

How dare she call Haruki a mutt?

_'Well, I technically do it as well.. But only Isuke can refer to that idiot as such.'_

Sumireko now wore an unperturbed and aloof expression.

Removing the tea set from the tray, she placed the small silver cups on the table, pouring out a cupful of steaming dark liquid.

Offering a cup to Mahiru, Sumireko eagerly watched as her roommate lifted the cup up to her pursed pink lips.

Isuke noticed Sumireko's hungry eyes and grinned.

"Well, it's clear that Banba isn't the only thirsty one here, huh." Isuke teased, swirling her fingers around her curls.

Hitsugi bit down on her lips and her small frame shook as she tried her best to contain her laughter.

Hanabusa fumed, slightly chocking on her own drink.

She covered her now crimson face with her fingers.

Isuke couldn't tell if she was either angry or flustered.

Maybe both.

Mahiru tilted her head and gave her roommate a confused look. Not understanding why her usually composed companion looked the way she did.

"Enough of that." Sumireko cleared her throat, glaring at a now pleased looking Isuke.

"Did I miss the party memo?" A loud and somewhat fatigued voice eagerly intervened.

Haruki had jogged all the way to the table, and pulled a chair back. Sitting next to Isuke, grinning.

"Good morning, Sagae-san." Hitsugi politely greeted.

Sumireko brought her tea cup into her hands, blew, and nodded in greeting.

Mahiru politely smiled, still looking down at the table.

"Morning guys." Haruki beamed leaning against her chair.

"Did you jump in a sewer with all of your clothes on? You smell like an old wet rag." Isuke complained, wrinkling her nose, she leaning away from the girl, wearing a strained and disgusted look.

"I left ya a note telling you I would be jogging." Haruki chuckled, now turning her attention to Isuke's plate of untouched food.

"You going to finish that?" Haruki boldly asked, pointing at the plate.

Isuke pushed the plate in Haruki's direction.

"You can have it." Isuke waved a hand. "The food here isn't exactly to Isuke's taste."

"You should really eat more, Isuke-sama." Haruki took a big unrefined bite. "I really worry about you sometimes."

Contradicting her own words, Haruki was already hungrily scarfing down the contents of the plate. The food tasted a good as it smelled.

After about five seconds, Isuke realized that she had been staring at Haruki the entire time, with what she considered to be a stupid smile from her part.

"My, I really do wonder who the thirsty one here is." Sumireko teased wearing a calm and victorious expression. Once again, she took a sip of her tea.

Haruki was now curiously looking at Isuke. A faint smile playing at the corners of her lips as she chewed.

"Do you want me to get you something to drink, Isuke-sama?" Haruki generously offered, searching her pocket for spare change.

Hitsugi hid her face behind her bear. Unsuccessfully hiding her amusement which was accompanied by laughter.

"Don't talk with your mouth full, you idiot." Isuke ordered, determinedly ignoring the irrational spark of heat she suddenly felt.

Mahiru lightly tugged on Hanabusa's sleeve, making the girl put her cup down before the movement made her spill the flavored water.

"Please..don't bully Inukai-san." She shyly pleaded, hiding her eyes behind her bangs.

"Never thought Inukai-san was the type to ever be submitted to bullying." Hitsugi added.

"Who's bullying you, Isuke-sama?" Haruki swallowed her food, looking genuinely concerned for her roommate.

"No one, you dolt." Isuke fumed.

"It really was a smart choice to come here while Chitaru was out." Hitsugi amusingly said, hugging her bear tighter and giggling.

"Oh yeah, I ran into her earlier." Haruki happily said, pointing her fork at Hitsugi after taking another bite of the food.

Isuke groaned and got up. Her patience was now at its limits.

"We're leaving." Isuke forcefully grabbed Haruki by her shirt collar and pulled on it, causing Haruki to stumble out of her chair.

Without excusing herself, Isuke began to drag Haruki away.

"But I haven't finished eating-"

"What did I tell you about talking with food in your mouth?" Isuke warned as she dragged Haruki across the room and finally out the door.

Hitsugi got up from her chair.

"I should get going as well. Chitaru-san is probably already back." Her tone was anxious as she spoke.

After excusing herself, Sumireko watched the small girls frame grow distant and smaller as she went out the door and left the cafeteria.

Sumireko closed her eyes and release a small laugh, blowing on her tea.

"This place just offers one amusing surprise after another, don't you agree, Banba-san?"

…

"Where are we going?" Haruki inquired.

Isuke had finally come to a halt just outside the cafeteria.

She hadn't really thought things through. She had just wanted to get away from the unpleasant and accusing table she had been sitting in.

Haruki took this moment to re-adjust her shirt and think back to Chitaru's words.

"Say, Isuke-sama."

"What is it?" Isuke absentmindedly responded, removing her phone from her pocket and looking at the time.

They still had another hour to spare before Mizorogi's dreadful lecture. Last time he had mentioned that he would be discussing something about how plants and animals can benefit from one another in their raw forms, and during times of crisis, such as blizzards and droughts.

Isuke was not looking forward to that.

The phone vibrated and informed Isuke that she had just received a message, it was from her Mama.

"It's just that I've been thinking about some stuff lately." Haruki looked around, and nervously rubbed the back of her neck as she said this.

For some reason Isuke couldn't comprehend why her mind quickly wondered back to the conversation that had went down in the cafeteria.

"_Stuff?_" Isuke repeated, slightly leaning back and protectively crossing her arms.

Isuke held Haruki's eyes now, and would not let them shift or find time to close off.

Haruki mutely shook her head and smiled. Her palms felt sweaty.

That's when it hit her.

What exactly did she want to talk with Isuke about?

Haruki blinked.

Coming to this realization, she was unable to articulate anything. Because she wasn't sure herself what it was she wanted to discuss with Isuke.

Tapping her heels on the ground, Isuke intently watched as Haruki struggled to find words, and wondered what could be the cause of this.

"Haruki?" Traces of worry lingered in her tone; her expression, softening for a second.

Haruki felt panicked, and took a step back. She defensively brought her hands up and in front of her, and managed a smile.

"You see, Hakuto-"

Isuke's eyes widened at the mere mention of his name.

"What about Hakuto?"

Isuke sternly interrogated, forcefully stepping forward. This movement cause Haruki to take another step back herself.

_'Idiot! This is not what you wanted to say..'_ Haruki scolded herself, biting her lip.

She now shifted her attention to the ground and furrowed her brows in displeasure. She had not intended to bring him up, yet, anyway.

"Haruki."

This time when Isuke spoke Haruki's name, it was serious.

Isuke grabbed Haruki by her wrist and yanked her forward. Intense amber eyes clashed with the liquidity of gold ones, causing a type of alarm to go off inside Haruki.

Haruki nervously laughed.

"What a scary look, Isuke-sama." She joked, tugging on her hand, trying to break free from Isuke's grasp.

"Did he tell you anything?"

"Wha-"

"Did you see him?" Isuke rephrased, unconsciously pulling Haruki forward until their own bodies were less than inches apart.

Haruki remorsefully looked at the ground, her eyes, saddened. She could now see that she had worried someone.

Not just anyone.

She worried Isuke.

And not just that, the guilt of her meeting with Hakuto was eating her up inside.

Hakuto's proposition..

Haruki looked around the somewhat vacant area.

Thankfully, the cafeteria doors were completely tinted in black, because if it had been glass, everybody would be able to see them.

Being so early in the morning, only little amount of students wondered about the area.

If it had been later during the day, this little event would have cause quite the scene.

"Um, Haruki-senpai.."

Isuke's displayed clear annoyance.

Who would be as bold as to interrupt them while Isuke planned to finally confront Haruki?

And-

_'Haruki-senpai?' _

Isuke moved her eyes away from her squirming and tense roommate and focused on locating the pest.

She was a student.

A student who, to Isuke's displeasure, recognized as one of Haruki's casual admires.

If it had been any other student, Isuke would have just dismissed their presence, as usual, and continued on with her business.

Especially if said business was something as important and fragile as the subject they were about to discuss.

But this student was different.

This girl, with her short brown hair and petite frame, was the same one who would always wait for Haruki outside their classroom door.

The same girl who would always _'bake too many cookies'_ and would _'have no other choice'_ but to give some to _'Haruki-senpai'_.

The same girl who dared to challenge Isuke with her eyes whenever Haruki would so much as place a hand on Isuke's shoulder in her presence.

Right now, this girl, was boldly approaching Haruki, completely brushing Isuke aside.

Haruki.

She was quiet.

Isuke had to momentarily stop glaring at the obsessive admirer to focus on Haruki. The hostile way Isuke had been leaning forward, causing Haruki to recoil back, did not really appear good to the outside, observing, and interfering eyes.

Sighing, Isuke released her hold on Haruki, feeling stupid for her own actions, and straightened herself.

The girl who was Haruki's alleged admired intently and quietly watched this. She couldn't help but feel jealous and spite Isuke.

Not only did the overly attractive pink-haired girl get to share a room with 'Haruki-senpai', and watch her sleep. She also seemed close to her. Close enough to make any fan feel uncomfortable and rage with envy.

"Um.." The little brown haired girl, finally mustered up the courage to speak up, now gaining both Haruki's and Isuke's full attention.

Managing her casual smile, Haruki smoothed out her shirt and straightened herself as well.

"Um, can I-" Haruki glanced at Isuke. Feeling somewhat relieved by the fact that the small girl had interrupted. "..help you?"

"I-it's me, senpai.. Misaki." Misaki shyly added, now looking at her feet.

"Oh!" Haruki snapped her fingers, enlightened. "You're the one who always bakes cookies." Haruki's smile grew wider as she was now able to recognize the girl.

"You must really love to bake, since you're always making too much." Haruki brightly, and obliviously added, in full admiration of the girls' dedication to her hobby.

Isuke loudly scoffed, knowing of the girls true intentions.

Misaki glared at Isuke, who now pretended to busy herself by shifting her weight to one side and filing her nails with the file she always carried.

"Maybe you shouldn't bake so much then." Isuke indifferently added, after blowing on her nails. "Your figure is starting to rebel." She amusingly finished, pointing the file at the girl.

Gasping in sudden grief, Misaki clutched her stomach, and in response to Isuke's comment, got red in embarrassment.

Isuke grinned, she was unconsciously taking out her frustration on the poor girl. She wondered for a second why that girl even bothered her in general.

Haruki waved her hands apologetically at the girl, looking visibly bothered by how she was unable to comfort the girl.

"No, no, she didn't mean that." Haruki reassured.

"Yes I did."

"Isuke-sama!" Haruki pleaded.

Isuke was painfully aware that she was, in fact, acting like a child, but there was something about the Misaki girl that just got under her skin.

"It's ok, Haruki-senpai."

Misaki began rummaging around her school bag. She removed a small plastic container, containing what appeared to be overly decorated cookies.

"I made a little too much again." She stated, shyly looking at the ground. "So it would be a great help to me if you would accept them, as always." Misaki added extending her hands out, offering the cookies.

Isuke scowled at the container.

"Wow, thanks!" Haruki exclaimed, smiling with pure delight.

Misaki smiled.

"Guess we can consider it a happy coincidence running into each other." Haruki grinned, gently opening the container and plopping one of the delicious treats in her mouth. "Delicious as always." She praised, with her mouth now slightly full.

Isuke turned her head away and distracted herself by staring at the coming and going of other students around the area.

"Yeah, happy coincidence." She bitterly mumbled, crossing her arms.

The warning bell interrupted, echoing around the area.

Misaki looked anxious at the sound.

"I should get going!" She began walking backwards. "I'm on morning duty." Waving her hand in goodbye, she was off. Isuke didn't even look in the girls' direction, and Haruki waved back, smiling.

Licking her lips, Haruki popped another cookie in her mouth and closed her eyes as she chewed.

"These are really good."

Haruki removed another cookie from the container and offered it to Isuke.

"Wanna try some?"

Glancing at the treat, Isuke made something of a small, barely audible, displeasured sound. She pushed Haruki's hand away and flipped one of her curls.

"It doesn't really take much to please you, does it?"

Haruki simply grinned in response, too busy savoring the cookies flavor.

Sighing, Isuke straightened herself and faced Haruki.

"About earlier-" Isuke tried to breach their previous subject again.

Haruki blinked, remembering what they were discussing before the interruption.

"Ah, Isuke-sama." Haruki swallowed her food. "We have to get going."

Isuke raised an inquiring brow.

"Class, we don't wanna be late right?"

Isuke closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.

"Class isn't important." She impatiently and obviously stated. "Are you forgetting that we're not even real students here?"

"Mizorogi will be sad if we're late," Haruki fidgeted, and noticed her clothes. "Plus I have to go change, ah, I, I wouldn't want to bother you by smelling like a wet rag, right?" Haruki laughed and took a step back.

"I'll come with-" Isuke sighed, stepping forward.

"No! It's fine really." Haruki added, waving her hands, taking a few more steps back. "I'll, um, see you there!"

And with that Isuke watched after Haruki's figure, as she jogged away, growing even more distant with each passing second.

_'I can't keep avoiding this.' _Haruki thought as she jogged back to the room.

She remembered how Isuke had clearly showed worry earlier, and how the mere mention of Hakuto had been the trigger.

She quickened her pace and went from a jog to a sprint.

As much as Haruki wanted the peaceful days to continue, she could now see that the events that are about to come, were unavoidable.

The sound of the shifting chalk against the blackboard echoed around the quiet classroom.

As always, some were more diligent than others, taking notes regarding whatever subject Mizorogi was enthusiastically writing about.

All were currently present in the classroom, minus Kouko, who had earlier excused herself due to a faculty meeting which she had to attend as the class representative.

Isuke sighed.

She rhythmically tapped her nails against her desk, glancing at the clock every other second. The class that has only been going on for less than fifteen minutes felt like fifty years.

Isuke stiffened, feeling something tickle her neck which caused her head to involuntarily tilt back an inch.

Biting her teeth, and in one swift movement, Isuke slapped Haruki's hand away from the close proximity of her head.

Haruki did this whenever she found Mizorogi's lectures equally boring. So to no surprise, it happened frequently.

She would tangle her fingers around the soft and loose, silk strands of Isuke's hair. Sometimes even taking a chance at attempting a braid. Even if she did always miserably fail at it.

Isuke pulled her hair forward, and leaned away from Haruki. Who was now nibbling on a freshly removed piece of Pocky.

"Don't be like that, Isuke-sama." Haruki whispered. Leaning forward and extending her hands going once again for Isuke's hair.

She grinned.

"I've been practicing."

"I don't want your filthy hands touching my hair." Isuke quietly and rudely snapped back.

Haruki, displayed a little surprise, but quickly masked it with a smile. She leaned back against her own chair and directed her attention to the window. Isuke had been unnecessarily hash over such a trivial thing, that it had actually taken both of them by surprise.

But Isuke was still somewhat mad at Haruki about what happened earlier. Haruki had made an escape before Isuke could confront her.

The classroom door gently opened and a stern and serious looking figure walked in.

"Sensei." Kouko called, diligently walking into the classroom.

"Ah! Kaminaga-san!" Mizorogi excitedly spoke. "You're just in time. Sensei was about to explain-"

"The chairman requests Ken'mochi Shiena's presence as if right now." She walked all the way to Mizorogi and handed him a official paper, which briefly explained the details.

"Already in trouble, I see." Nio knowingly teased with a laugh.

Mizorogi took a few seconds to read the contents of the paper, and signed it.

"Very well.." Mizorogi cleared his throat doing his best to put up a teacher-like front. "Ken'mochi-san, you're needed up in the headmasters office."

All eyes fell on the poor girl.

"V-very well." Shiena simply said, getting up from her seat. "This was bound to happen eventually."

Mizorogi put the paper down on his desk, and clenched his fist, somewhat teary eyed.

"Hurry back, Ken'mochi-san." He exaggerated, teary eyed. "No matter what you did, Sensei won't love you any less."

Nio and Haru both looked at Mizorogi and released an uncertain laugh. Not knowing whether they should humor him like always or not.

"And Sensei was about to start discussing the best part-"

"There's more?" Isuke loudly complained, interrupting Mizorogi.

Leaning back against her seat once more, she crossed both her arms and legs.

"Isuke never knew sitting in a chair could be such a lethal thing. How were you not able to do Haru-chan last time?"

"Inukai." Tokaku reprimanded from her seat.

"I think if he had tried, he would have done a better job than you, Inukai-san." Sumireko tenderly added from her own desk.

"What?" Isuke snapped back.

"Isuke-sama." Haruki tried, chewing on her Pocky and putting an attempting, calming hand on her roommates shoulder.

Which Isuke brushed off.

"Oh! Class just got a bit more exciting, good job!" Nio enthusiastically beamed, fist pumping once and smiling.

Mizorogi wore a lost look and scratched his head, not knowing what was going on, or what they were talking about.

"Enough of that." Kouko added, clearly unamused by the senseless arguing between her classmates.

"Are you all forgetting that we're all here once again because we all failed?" Suzu added with a pleasant smile.

"You guys are making my Haru-chan uncomfortable." Otoya whined, playfully slamming her hands against her desk and pointing at Haru.

With a 'humph' Isuke turned her head away.

Chitaru turned around and looked at Tokaku, who quietly and intently glared from her seat.

"Shouldn't she be doing something?" She quietly mumbled to herself.

"It doesn't really concern us." Hitsugi obviously pointed out, gaining a surprised look from her own roommate.

Nio raised her hand.

"Sensei should do something before there's bloodshed."

Mizorogi stuttered, not knowing what to do or why he had to do something. He looked at Mahiru for a lifeline, only to have her fidget and glance away.

"Banba-san.." He painfully and tearily mumbled, realizing that he had no other resorts left.

Shiena snatched the signed form from a dumbed looking Sensei.

"I wouldn't have failed." Shiena angrily muttered glaring at the ground.

"Wha, you couldn't even hold your ground against someone half your size." Isuke stated, indifferently waving a hand in Hitsugi's direction.

This caused the small girl to hug her bear and recoil into her seat at the memory of the events that followed, gaining a concerned look from her roommate.

"Breaching the taboo subject? Nice move, Isuke-san." Nio pointed out, obviously enjoying and feeding the small commotion.

Shiena crumpled the form in her now clenched fist and gritted her teeth, sending visual death threats to Isuke through her glare.

Isuke played with one of her curls.

"Scaaary." Isuke teased, in a very Isuke-like manner, rocking in her chair.

Shiena gritted her teeth harder and bolted out the room, slamming the door on her way out.

"Ah, don't you think that was going a bit too far?" Haruki worriedly whispered to Isuke.

"Shut up." Isuke hushed.

"Sensei!" Otoya stood up. "I just remembered that I had to use the bathroom."

"That's not something you exactly forget." Suzu amusingly contributed, looking thoughtful and placing a hand on her chin.

Mizorogi sighed, giving up in trying to keep up. He gestured to the door wearing the kind of look that would remind you of a kicked puppy out in the rain.

"Please hurry back, Sensei was up all night preparing this presentation."

"Yes sir!" Otoya sang and she left through the door.

Once she was sure that she had firmly closed the door behind her, she looked in both directions before noticing Shiena's distant and stomping figure.

"Shiena-chan!" Otoya exclaimed in a sprint, catching up to the sullen girl.

Shiena never stopped or slowed her pace. Barely sparing a glance.

"So why'd you do it?" Otoya asked, smiling, matching her own pace with that of her roommates.

"Do what?"

"Don't play coy with me." She stated raising a finger. "In a way, we are both pieces that were cut from the same cloth."

"Don't compare me to the likes of you." Shiena quickened her pace, reaching the elevator. "We are nothing alike."

Shiena attacked the elevator button, taking out her frustrations on it.

"Eh?" Otoya announced, confused, she leaned slightly towards Shiena. "But you're getting called up for something."

Otoya released a sinister smile, her eyes, sharpening.

"And it's probably not for a noble prize."

Shiena sighed, clicking the button one more time. The elevator doors finally opened, and she did not hesitate to enter and click the button which would take her up to the floor she needed to go.

As the doors began to close, Otoya stopped the process, jamming her foot between the closing doors.

"Why are you avoiding me?" Otoya sincerely asked, her eyes, showing worry as she clung to the door, making sure it didn't close.

Worry was an emotion which Shiena was sure the other girl was unable to possess.

"Because you're a criminal." Shiena brought a hand up. "No, let me rephrase, you're a psychopath."

"I'm not a criminal." Otoya sullenly looked at the ground, genuinely hurt by Shiena's words.

"We're all criminals here!" Shiena exclaimed.

"I'm pretty sure Haru-chan isn't." Otoya shrugged, in an attempt to lighten the mood by trying to go back to her bubbly self.

"Step aside."

"It's been two months, how come you haven't warmed up to me yet?" Otoya whined, her tone was a bit serious.

"Because-" Shiena stuttered, looking at the ground and taking a step back inside the elevator.

"Because?"

Shiena clenched her fists harder than they already were, and took a tense breath, closing her eyes.

"I'm terrified of you, ok?!"

A small silence was shared.

"Cutting people.. Just because you like someone doesn't give you the right to do it..." Shiena quietly muttered. "Hurting people like that...is not justifiable in any way."

Otoya blankly stared at her roommate, her mouth slightly open and her eyes displaying clear pain at this confession.

"Oh.."

"I don't wanna be late." Shiena rubbed her arm and looked at the floor, not wanting to make eye contact with the purple haired girl.

For some reason, the look in Otoya's eyes pained her, causing her discomfort. She was not sure why she felt like crying as soon as the words had left her mouth.

Otoya hid her eyes behind her bangs and cleared her throat, releasing her grip on the electric door and removing her foot from its way.

The elevator completely shut and made a humming noise which informed any bystanders that it was in use.

Leaning her head against the cold, hard door, Otoya placed a hand on the metallic surface.

_'Cutting people.. Just because you like someone doesn't give you the right to do it..'_

Shiena's words echoed in Otoya's head.

A rasp of a laugh escaped through her lips and she gently closed her hands on top of the door, making them into small shaky fists.

"But I've been doing my best not to do anything to you.."

Back in the classroom Mizorogi had decided to move on with his lecture, asking Kaminaga to please fill in Takeshi and Ken'mochi on what they missed.

"Ok, since we're all in equal numbers right now, let's pair up." Mizorogi explained. "I want you guys to make a concept map about how both plants and animals are the same but differ. Isn't that exciting? Best of luck!"

"What?" Nio complained. "Sensei, that's unfair, I don't get a partner."

"Don't worry, Sensei will be both your partner and older brother!" Mizorogi smiled.

"..yeah."

"Why not join up with me and Tokaku-san?" Haru interrupted, bringing her hands together.

"Don't want it." Tokaku quickly and simply said, grabbing a chair and putting it next to Haru's.

"Tokaku-san.."

The bustling movement of seats could be heard.

"I still am not exactly sure why we have to actually take this seriously." Kouko confessed with a sigh, adjusting her own seat next to Suzu's

Suzu giggled in response.

"Consider this an educating experience. Relaxing every once in a while never hurt."

Haruki beamed forward in her chair after taking another bite of her Pocky.

"Hey, hey, Isuke-sama, wanna pair up?"

"I'd much rather side with that." Isuke sighed, pointing at Nio.

"That?" Nio pitifully laughed, pointing at herself.

Wait.

This could be a good opportunity for Isuke to actually have a talk with Haruki. They were in the middle of class, so where was she supposed to run off to now?

"Fine."

"Alright!" Haruki happily got up and put her chair in a position where it was in front of Isuke's.

"Hey!" Nio whined. "Guess I'm stuck with him." She sighed.

"Him?" Mizorogi repeated.

Under any normal circumstances, Isuke would have been the one to rotate her own seat, so that she could face Haruki. But Isuke didn't plan on going through the trouble. After Haruki finally settled down, she took out some pens and paper and began to draw out a concept map.

Isuke carefully watched this.

Haruki had been a slave to her family all her life. She never exactly had any time for school or anything else regarding her. So in a way, it was sadly painful to watch how she got so excited over the smallest of things.

Especially school work.

To most of the Black Class members, being stuck back here brought unpleasant memories. And some even felt deprived of their own freedom. But to Haruki. Fake or not. She wanted it all to be real.

They were receiving and actual education, so why not make the best of it?

"Do you think plants ever get hungry?" Haruki inquired, thoughtfully, and trying her best to focus on the paper while she chewed on another Pocky stick.

They proceeded to quietly work. Every now and then, someone would come into the classroom, be it other teachers or just students, to ask Mizorogi questions or discuss educational wise topics.

After a while of these repeated events, Haruki seemed quiet and clearly distracted from her work.

Isuke knew something was wrong. Haruki was not the overly diligent and quiet type.

Normally, she would have probably gone on and on about weird dreams she's had, or how she thinks the guy who invented Pocky should have a special statue next to a statue of the guy who invented sliced bread.

Her back was to the door, so whenever it would slam open or shut, she would uneasily begin to look around.

Sometimes Nio would talk to her, asking questions about the work, now that Mizorogi refused to answer everything, but in most cases, she would not listen or focus on what the blond was saying.

"You spelled that wrong." Isuke commented, pointing.

But Haruki just blankly stared at the paper, her face looked thoughtful and distant, cringing again at the sound of the door.

"Haruki."

Haruki jumped in surprise, clearing her throat and apologetically smiling.

"You say something, Isuke-sama?"

"Yeah.. You spelled 'biological' wrong." Isuke hesitantly added, aware of her roommates every move.

"Oh. Guess writing just isn't my thing." Haruki apologized, erasing the word.

She really was working hard; But it was not the time for that.

"Where were you last night?" Isuke quietly and seriously asked.

Haruki dropped her pencil, her eyes widening in surprise. She had been dead sure that Isuke had been asleep.

Maybe she made a sound that had woken her up?

No.

Isuke could peacefully sleep through lectures. A little noise wouldn't be enough to even make her stir.

"Last night?" Haruki pulled herself together.

Isuke saw Haruki sit back. Perhaps because Isuke herself was leaning forward now.

Earnest and demanding.

As if Haruki owed her any type of explanation, when she clearly, did not.

"You were awake?"

Isuke stayed silent, not knowing what else to say or how she was going to push the subject further. What if she had just been overthinking and Haruki had gone off to do some sort of menial chore for somebody else, like she sometimes did.

It's an overly kind idiot type of thing.

"Haruki.."

Haruki chuckled, deep and throaty.

"That's pretty sly, Isuke-sama, being awake and letting me make an idiot of myself like that." Haruki tried, attempting to be playful.

"What-"

Isuke didn't really understand her roommates comment. It wasn't until she remembered the events of last night that she was finally able to make sense of her words.

A low remorseful growl bubbled up in her throat. She felt like punching herself and disappearing.

Isuke rested her hands on her lap, and looked down on them.

Being so focused in trying to figure out where Haruki had been, Isuke had gone completely oblivious to the somewhat charming side Haruki had displayed last night.

About how Haruki had promised to protect her.

How gentle Haruki's words had sounded in her ear.

How her lips felt so warm and tender against her knuckles.

"What makes you happy?" Isuke blurted out. Mentally trying to collect herself, but for some reason, her heart raced in her chest.

Haruki had to take care of her family.

Haruki had to work who knows how many jobs in order to keep them fed.

Haruki had her own studies to focus on.

And now she was expected to protect Isuke from who knows what sort of ordeal.

She had to do all of this alone. Without complaining.

"Happiness is a concept that had passed me by.." Haruki admitted, her voice was sad and melancholic.

Now Isuke sat back.

The sting of being hit by Haruki's words had practically struck her brain off-balance.

Casually, Isuke glanced at the seats next to her, making sure that their conversation was not gaining unwanted attention. Her eyes followed Mizorogi's steps around the room, and she listened to the subdued and well-bread laughter between Chitaru and Hitsugi.

Haruki caught Isuke's eyes, which looked rather questionably at her.

"I really do love my family... It's just that all my life, I've felt somewhat trapped. Striving for others rather than myself."

She bashfully laughed, feeling horrible at the expense of her own words, after admitting this.

"But..ever since I've been back here in Myōjō, I've had more fun than I could even imagine."

Her bashful smile spread into a grin.

"Now... I feel as if I have something to strive for.."

Haruki snickered, pushing her bangs back out of her face and grinning once again.

"Because you're here, Isuke."

Haruki's voice sounded thin and far away.

"I don't really know myself, but Chitaru-san said that there was something I had to figure out."

She hesitantly added.

"It's something related to you, I think."

Haruki gave Isuke that maddening, tender and nonchalant look that seemed to crawl its way around her.

"I still haven't figured out what it is, but.."

Haruki snapped her knuckles, a habit, Isuke noticed, that she did whenever she felt uneasy or didn't quite understand something.

"Please, don't worry about me. Because right now I'm in the best state of mind I've ever been."

Haruki's smile faltered, and she looked at her hands.

Her eyes darkened for what seemed to be a split second, then reverting back to their usual glint.

"And about last night..I'll tell you about it later..."

Haruki nonchalantly flashed her casual, carefree, open and friendly grin.

"Just, let me protect what is important to me."

Isuke stared, utterly unmoving and uncomprehending.

"And is that good enough for you?" Isuke muttered, looking away and suppressing the tinge of scarlet that for some reason, was battling to make its way out.

Haruki rested her hands under the table and leaned forward.

Feeing a familiar warmth consume one of her hands, which was neatly placed in her lap, Isuke stiffened.

Haruki was looking curiously down at her, a faint smile playing at the corners of her lips. Tightly gripping Isuke's hand, she tangling their fingers together.

"It is."

**Authors Note: Guess who got her screen time? That's right. You're welcome~ I had a few Otoya and Shiena shippers floating around, so this one's for you guys. **

**I had originally planned something nice and fluffy, but after I read over it, I just kept asking myself: "How did they get to this point?". So I had to turn it into that just for some self-satisfaction. **

**More is to come, more ships will sail, and already sailing ships won't hit any Icebergs (probably). If I properly plan things out, things will get moving this Saturday, hopefully.**

**I'd like to thank you all for your patience and continued support. Whenever my resolve for the story wavers, you guys manage to take my hand and pull me forward. Others push me down the stairs, but, a push is a push and I kindly thank you!**

**Look forward to it!**


	9. Chapter 9: October

**Chapter 9: October**

"That concludes all for today's lecture." Mizorogi-sensei happily announced, genuinely pleased when he noticed that Isuke had been the only one who fell asleep this time around. Usually two or three students would be knocked out cold. So if Inukai was the only one asleep, that had to mean that he was getting better.

"Sensei." Sumireko called from her attention drawing desk, politely raising a hand. "I'd like to make an announcement, if you were to allow it."

Mizorogi smiled and nodded. For once he felt truly respected and recognized as a teacher, since Hanabusa had politely asked for permission instead of just blurting out whatever it was she needed to say, like Nio usually did.

"Tonight I will be having a semi-formal gathering in the top floor of this building. You are all welcomed to join, if you wish."

"What's the occasion?" A curios Nio asked.

"I-" Sumireko cleared her throat, collecting herself. "I'm engaged."

There was a brief silence. Mizorogi-sensei didn't look very pleased at the news; rather sad actually, and the Black Class members exchanged troubled glances with one another.

"Engaged?" Kouko doubtfully repeated.

As if on cue everybody shot Mahiru supporting and sympathetic looks.

Mahiru, whose thoughts on the situations seemed hard to understand, because she was acting like her usual shy self. The only difference, Haruki noted, was that her hands were a bit shaky, and she tightly clung to her skirt. Avoiding eye contact with anybody who tried to console her with any looks.

"My father, the head of Hanabusa Corp. just finished the formalities for a deal that could greatly benefit our company." Drawing back the attention of her crowed, Sumireko explained. "The ceremony will technically be our agreement."

Sumireko politely smiled her usual business-like smile and put up a front, not wanting her real feelings to show through.

"That would be all." She bowed in Mizorogi's direction, informing him that he could proceed with whatever he was going to do before her interruption.

Without adding anything else, he dismissed the class, which now felt as if it had something of a gray cloud hovering over it.

For some reason, Sumireko's announcement had brought everybody an inexplicable type of welling uneasiness.

Sumireko was the first to wordlessly leave the classroom. By the looks of it, she had to go get ready for the gathering her father was selfishly hosting. She had only painfully and apologetically looked at her roommate, who was too busy fiddling with her skirt to pretend to notice.

Haruki gave a weak smile to her white heard friend, who still refused to look at anyone.

"Hey, Isuke-sama, do you think-"

"Mmmm.."

Isuke drowsily snuggled deeper into her arm. Her hair draped and covered part of her face. Noticing this a mischievous spark gleamed in Haruki's eyes.

She had to wake Isuke up.

Putting aside the casual classroom drama:

Let the fun begin.

Haruki jumped out of her seat and squatted down in front of Isuke's.

"Shutou, are you coming?" An impatient Kouko pressured, after she finished putting her class material away."

Suzu brought a finger up to her lips, gesturing her serious companion that it would be best to keep quiet.

"I think we're about to witness another interesting development." She said, with a smile in her voice.

"Heeeey, Isuke-samaaa." Haruki audibly whispered. She squatted closer to Isuke's desk and firmly clutched the sides of the table, trying to maintain her balance. In response to this particular movement, Isuke couldn't do anything else except look at Haruki through half closed lids.

Finally giving into exhaustion, she closed her eyes again.

"Sleeping beauty." Haruki gently and playfully whispered, repeatedly poking at Isuke's head.

"Go away." The sleeping girl mumbled.

Haruki chuckled and tugged gently and playfully at one of Isuke's carefully curled locks, only drawing a small indignant sound of protest from the other girl.

"That's not exactly how the story goes."

"Five more minutes, Papa.." Isuke drowsily mumbled, slightly waving a weak and tired hand. Haruki's simple smile spread into a full amused grin.

"You have to get up, I made scrambled eggs and pancakes." Haruki tried, aiming for a deeper and more masculine tone. Probably in a feeble attempt to imitate the voice of Isuke's Papa. Even if she herself has never heard his voice before, so she couldn't exactly tell if she was doing it right.

Haruki let her hand rest unto Isuke's head, and she began to affectionately ruffle the soft pink locks.

"Plus you have to go to school."

"Don't wanna." Isuke, still sleepily, but adorably whined.

"What's wrong, sweetheart? Is the boy you like being all brute and mean at you again?" Haruki continued, her smile grew wider as she avoided succumbing to her own laughter.

Isuke yawned and stretched.

"Haruki isn't really-"

Isuke finally opened her eyes, and met with Haruki's, whose face was less that inches away.

"…"

"…"

Haruki waved a tentative hand and sheepishly smiled.

"G-good morning, Isuke-sama."

"What a turn of events." Nio hesitantly supplied, taking another bite from her melon bread.

"Do you think she finally realized that it's not her dad? Otoya whispered to Shiena, who in response, smiled but uncomfortably leaned away at the other girls' sudden proximity.

Isuke's amber eyes tripled in size and she stiffened. Jolting upright causing the hand which Haruki gently rested on her head to further mess up her already messy desk-head.

Her eyes looked a bit unfocused and confused as she tried to make sense of her surroundings. She wore a puzzled look.

"Haruki?"

"Yes?"

"What are you doing?"

"Ah..ha."

Isuke turned her attention to their small audience. Glaring at each and every one of the dumbfounded faces.

"What?" Isuke snapped, interrogatingly. Finally getting up from her seat.

Haru hesitated before speaking, shuffling her eyes all around the room.

"Hanabusa-san is having a small gathering tonight?"

Isuke narrowed her eyes at the girl. "So?"

Haru in response just slightly hid behind a protective Tokaku, who narrowed her own eyes at Isuke.

"A wedding party!" Nio jumped up, expressing her excitement with abrupt hand movements.

"Wedding party?" Isuke quietly repeated to herself, this time her eyes unknowingly scanned the room, finally landing on a quiet and distracted looking white haired girl. She arched a perfect brow and put her hands on her waist in a relaxed fashion, finally pointing a long, slender and accusing finger at Banba. "Hey, you ok with this?" Her eyes intently fixed on Mahiru.

"Isuke-sama." Haruki responded in a somewhat scolding and anxious matter.

Isuke scoffed and looked away, closing her eyes in a bored manner she opened them just to look at her nails.

"What? We're all thinking it."

"Though I'd have to agree with Isuke-san here.." Hitsugi added, directing her attention to Chitaru, who stood by her. The tall girl simply gave a weak and unknowing shrug.

All eyes fell on Banba.

She began to squirm under the inspecting eyes.

"Are you going, Banba-san?" Haru finally asked what everybody was being too hesitant to ask.

"I-I..don't think so.." She fiddled with her own fingers. "I don't…exactly like..-parties or.." Her voice trailed off.

Everyone was quiet.

"It'll be fun." Haruki added, stepping forward, extending her hands in an inviting matter. Grinning with a fresh piece of Pocky in her mouth. "Think about it."

Isuke knew that Haruki was trying to make the girl feel better, but this really wasn't exactly helping.

After that everybody left the classroom, because Banba no longer looked like she was in the mood for conversation. Or interrogation, in this case. Then again, she never did.

"So are we going?" Haruki impatiently asked for what Isuke considered to be the billionth time. She was seriously such a child sometimes.

Especially now, the way she rested on Isuke's bed, swinging her legs around the edge, whining about how they never do anything. They looked like an old married couple, and Isuke frowned at the thought. Other than because she had mentally implied that they were married, and because Isuke didn't like the idea of growing old.

Isuke sat at the corner of the wide bed, giving Haruki her back. She was touching up her manicure.

"Isuke doesn't want to go, can't you get that through your Pocky filled head already?" She repeated for the hundredth time. Haruki huffed her cheeks and pouted.

"I guess you're right, maybe we shouldn't go." Haruki grinned, testing. "I admit, that even I get intimidated by how powerful Hanabusa is."

Isuke stopped dead manicure.

"What was that?"

'_Gotcha.'_

"Yeah." Haruki indifferently waved a hand. "Going to some fancy-pansy event like the one she's throwing would cause any weak soul the run away with their tail between their legs."

Isuke stood up and strode to the closet, forcefully opening it and moving her hands around every article of clothing.

"Isuke-sama?"

"Try this on." Isuke flung a few pieces of silk and fabric on top of Haruki.

Haruki struggled under the bundle of clothes and finally managed to pop her head out.

"What is all of this?" Haruki asked, chuckling.

"We." Isuke continued flinging clothes around, making the surrounding area look like a murder scene. "We have a party to attend. And I'm sure that whatever trashy thrift store piece of clothing you own isn't even decent for a casual day out."

"But Isuke-sama..it was ninety nine yen."

"Shut up and try those on already." Isuke impatiently commanded, waving a hurried hand while she looked at what she might wear.

Haruki could no longer suppress her amusement and exploded in laughter. For someone who was always calling her a child, she was pretty childish herself. That's when she noticed that most of the clothes still had their price tags on. And then she noticed the price…

"Ah, Isuke-sama.."

"Hmm?" Isuke was clearly distracted, examining the closet.

"I can't wear these, most of these are fresh-new."

Isuke only responded with a dismissive hand and began to absentmindedly go through her closet once more. Haruki couldn't help but wonder where all of these articles had originally came from, and how had she failed to notice them before.

Isuke sighed, turning her attention to Haruki.

"What's the problem?" Isuke impatiently rubbed her temples.

"This is too much..I'll ruin it." Plus she can buy who know how many packs of Pocky with the sleeve of the dress alone. "Plus..it wouldn't look right on me.."

Isuke clearly noticed Haruki's comment.

Was Sagae Haruki actually being insecure about herself? She had no reason to be. Isuke could clearly see how toned and fit she was whenever they went to the public bath – not that she stared or anything.

Isuke cleared her throat, scolding herself for her way of thinking.

"Well, if you plan on being my date, you might as well look the part. Do you think Isuke is going to walk around with someone of lesser quality than she is?" She finished in her usual tone and dismissively waving her curls.

Haruki's eyes widened in bewilderment.

"D-date?" Haruki stuttered. For once, actually looking somewhat flushed, her cheeks subtly tainted a soft pale pink. She wondered why her pulse was suddenly racing at the idea, and her body felt all warm inside. Her stomach also felt weird..

"Yes, now." Isuke grabbed a few dresses, shoved them into Haruki's hands and pushed her all the way to the bathroom. "Go change before Isuke gets mad."

"O-ok." Haruki obediently followed orders, clumsily tripping over her own feet, almost falling down.

Once Haruki was changing, Isuke felt the front she had put up begin to crumble and covered her scarlet colored face with a hand.

And she couldn't help but let her mind wonder to the events that had followed the day Haruki had finally decided to tell Isuke where she had been that night:

After Mizorogi had dismissed them, Isuke decided that she would go to the public bath. Her exhaustion was begging to get to her and the steam of the bath would help her skin. Haruki had decided to tag along.

And Isuke couldn't just move on without acknowledging any of it, and everything couldn't be completely forgotten.

"You and your birth father are both Sagae."

Isuke blurted out, only looking ahead as she walked in the long corridor of their floor. They both had just finished getting their things from their room, and walked to the luxurious bathhouse Myōjō had to offer..

Other than from curiosity, she asked because she needed a distraction. Because if not, she would continue to think about how idiotic she had been with her own thoughts. And how nice and comforting Haruki's hand had felt back in the classroom.

She had to distract herself from these unknown mixed feelings. She wasn't used to these kinds of things.

"But your mother had re-married. Why is that?"

"Oh, well, all of our family documents were already under that name. So, it would have been a hassle to change them all."

Haruki broke a fresh Pocky stick between her teeth.

"Plus we didn't have the money to do it."

"I see."

Haruki quietly rummaged through a small bag she brought with her. She took out a small bottle.

Carefully removing the cap out of what appeared to be concealer, Haruki dapped some on her fingers and diligently rubbed it around her neck.

Isuke gave a questioning look.

One, because Haruki's random actions kept confusing her, and two, because she didn't think Haruki owned any type of makeup at all.

"What are you doing?"

"Don't mind me Isuke-sama. I'm just covering up a few little flaws here and there. So that they won't be noticeable."

Flaws that were most likely caused by her father. How could she just casually say that with a smile?

"Isn't that the new water-proof makeup brand?"

"Yup." Haruki simply answered.

How can she even afford that?

Isuke brought a hand to her head and acted as if she was nursing a headache.

"Isn't that taking away the whole point of taking a bath, you idiot."

"No worries. Nio hooked me up. I take my actual baths later after everyone has gone back to their rooms."

"Then why come now? Why not just go later?" Isuke tiredly exhaled. Stating the obvious.

Haruki smiled and looked at Isuke. Chuckling she finished applying the makeup around her shoulders and stomach and put it away.

"Aren't baths much more fun when everyone is together, Isuke-sama?"

Hanging her towel on her shoulder, Haruki put her hands behind her head in a relaxed manner.

"What? Is it even possible for you to stop being weird, or is it just an involuntary thing?"

Haruki's laugh now echoed in the empty hallway.

"Guess not." Haruki managed to say within her laughter.

Afterwards she explained that Hakuto had in fact called her last night, but it was only to intimidate her and ask for a favor. According to Haruki, it was nothing to really worry about. But Isuke couldn't help but wonder why Haruki had been so affected and told her she'd protect Isuke.

After Isuke voiced this, Haruki looked stunned and nervously chuckled, she wondered if the way she sugarcoated it wasn't really working. She continually reassured Isuke that she was only being paranoid with herself, and that there was nothing really to worry about. Probably.

Isuke had not been contempt with this answer, but by the looks of things, Haruki didn't plan on saying anything else regarding the manner, and Isuke thought that having something confirmed was better than nothing at all.

She'd try again another time.

The noise of the bathroom door opening brought Isuke back to her senses.

"Is this ok..? Haruki asked, coming out of the bathroom.

It was more than just _ok_.

Haruki decided to try on a simple, silky, green dress. It really wasn't that much of a dress itself, and Isuke never used it herself because she saw it as too plain for her tastes. But the way Haruki wore it. All of her features just decided to stand out. He toned feminine arms. The way the dress hugged her body in jut all the right places.. Her legs, her neck.. It all looked so right. Feminine appeal which Isuke didn't know Haruki was capable of possessing shone right through.

On the other hand, Haruki didn't notice the way Isuke had been stupidly staring because she herself was looking at Isuke with the same eyes Isuke looked at her.

Isuke had decided to try on a dress as well while Haruki changed.

It was small, black, and tight. Haruki had no other words for it. It actually reveled less skin than her usual wardrobe choice did, but that didn't make it any less appealing to her.

They both gawked at eachother, losing all brain function for a split second.

Both concluding that it was going to be a long night.

The room was brightly lit and classical waltz music engulfed the room in its tender rhythm. Appetizer tables were beautifully prepared in every section of the room, especially what could be considered a formidably large kitchen area. People mingled, their voice adding a soft tone to the already gentle background music. The occasional clanking of glass was another party-like addition to the sounds that could be heard.

Sumireko made her rounds, making sure that everything ran smoothly and that the guests would be more than welcomed.

From time to time, she would catch a glimpse of a familiar shade of white hair near a vegetable tray or by the window, which overlooked an elegant garden. And each time, Sumireko's breath would anxiously get caught in her throat.

This girl was seriously haunting her. Not just in her dreams anymore, but now, in the flesh as well.

Deciding to distract herself from her quickening pulse, Sumireko decided to look around. She couldn't suppress her amusement when she noticed how a horde of female students were surrounding Chitaru by the appetizers, in admiration. Hitsugi stuck close by, and struggled to keep a calm front.

Back on her trail, she decided to follow a crowd of people into the oversized dining room, which was currently the center of the food hurricane, just to make sure everything was going fine.

There she was able to locate and recognize a few familiar faces, in particular those of Isuke and Haruki.

Haruki seemed to be explaining something to Isuke, probably something that had happened to her, making exaggerated gestures every now and again. And Isuke patiently watched and nodded in response. Occasionally she would glare at the girls who would look at Haruki for a little too long, or try to get her attention.

Sumireko realized that she must have been staring for too long, because Isuke looked up and directed her attention to Sumireko, sparing more than just her usual glance.

Despite their obvious misgivings in the past, they must have been feeing collegial, because Sumireko found herself raising her glass in salute, and Isuke had grinned and returned the gesture.

Once again making her rounds, she exited the room and felt a presence sidled up next to her, purposely bumping their hips together.

"Nice party, Ojou-sama."

"Hashiri-san." Sumireko politely smiled. "Glad you were able to make it."

"Free food and drinks? Wouldn't miss it for the world."

"You look great." Sumireko politely smiled, gesturing with her wine free hand. "As usual."

Nio wore her casual uniform, uncaring of the occasion.

"You're looking fine yourself." Nio twisted her wine glass by the stem. "And from the way Mahiru-san was staring, I'd have to say she wouldn't mind seeing you without any attire at all."

"Hashiri-san!"

Sumireko looked down at her elegant rose-cream dress and self-consciously ran her palm over it, smoothing it out. She was genuinely shocked, and wondered how much wine her blonde classmate exactly had. Nio was admirably dumbly-sharp-witted and sharp-tongued when she had a little too much.

"How has the semester been?" Sumireko asked, smiling and abruptly changing the subject.

"Reeeeally good" Nio said, bobbing her head. "Luckily enough, this time around our class had a pair of good students!"

Sumireko felt slightly uncomfortable at the claim. Considering that the sole purpose of the class, year after year, was to kill a person.

"Oh, you give us too much credit." She huffed and dismissively waved her hand.

Sumireko spotted the same white haired familiar face entering dining room.

Nio gave her shoulder a brief squeeze.

"Why don't you go talk to her? By the looks of things, she's not going to do well by herself in these types of events. For now, I think you still have time before you have to freak out about the details."

"Details..?"

Nio gave Hanabusa's prosthetic arm a strong and alarming tug.

"Yeah, Details." Nio sternly but happily repeated.

Sumireko politely grinned in response to Nio.

"Excuse me."

She excused herself and went in direction towards the small balcony, just far enough from the bustle of the event. She sighed and took a large gulp of her red wine.

Why did Nio need to remind her of her insecurities?

One of the main reasons Sumireko was so calculating and careful around Mahiru was because she didn't want her to find out that she was practically half mechanical.

Sumireko rocked on the soles of her heels and sighed.

'_I just don't want to break something that's already so fragile..'_ Sumireko concluded this as the reason why she didn't want her shy roommate to know.

"W-why..aren't you inside?"

Sumireko quickly spun around in her heels and saw an unsuspecting face in front of her.

She felt her throat constrict and she was rendered speechless. Staring a little harder, unblinking, she made sure that the person in front of her wasn't her imagination. The effects of the wine were already taking effect. Had she really drank that much because of her anxiety?

Mahiru wore a beautiful, white and elegant, semi-formal type of dress. Her collarbone was well-defined and protruding from pale, alabaster skin, that led to a long graceful neck. Her hair was down, parted to one side, and it cascaded past her bare shoulders.

It truly was a sight for sore eyes.

Mahiru finally looked up from the ground and their eyes connected, causing Sumireko to immediately look away, embarrassed that she had been caught starring.

Sumireko breathed in deeply, summoning courage to at least manage a greeting. It was her party after all, it would be rude to her guests if she did not fully welcome them.

Mahiru still held Sumireko's eyes, a ghost of a smile played on her lips.

Sumireko was more than pleasantly surprised. She had been so sure that Banba would not come. She was not sociable, and lacked enthusiasm for more than the occasional tea parties they had during the night.

"Evening ladies." A deep and humble, interrupting voice supplied.

The fresh cold air of the night served as a release to the compressed tension Sumireko now felt in her chest.

"Yuu." Sumireko was more than unpleased by her unwelcomed guest. But he had every right to be there. Since he was, in fact, the groom.

Yuu was tall and had slightly dark-skin, due to all the business trips he's had to make. He looked to be in his early twenties.

Mahiru noted the way he gave out the air of a prince and was quickly intimidated by it.

He made his way all the way to where Sumireko stood, lovingly pulled her by her waist and brushed his lips against her forehead.

Sumireko cringed at the touch.

And Mahiru didn't know why a strange and painful water rose into her eyes when she looked at how Yuu had the freedom to touch Sumireko's skin with his lips..

He was not worthy.

"Sorry I'm late, I was just finishing the formalities with your father." He flashed a smile, revealing perfectly straight and white teeth. "Who's this?" he asked, now looking at Mahiru.

In the past, Sumireko had long suspected that Yuu was very much interested in marrying her.

She had not gained this awareness from any deep issuing of emotion on his part, but because it was commonly understood amongst their colleagues and wider community that Yuu had decided to _settle down_.

Not to mention that the engagement would greatly benefit both companies.

"This is Banba Mahiru-san." She explained, squirming out of his touch. "She is my roommate." Her explanations were short and sweet. She really didn't want him here.

Not right now.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Yuu bowed, and felt slightly uncomfortable when all Mahiru did was shy away. He cleared his throat and adjusted his tie. "Thank you for taking care of my fiancé."

Mahiru didn't know whether she wanted to cry, or run away. Maybe both.

Sumireko could see now that her young, immature passion would have little chance of lasting – such firecracker emotions rarely did – and that once the love had ceased to consume every part of her being, she would have been left fighting the ancient, wearing of her emotions.

Although sometimes she had been convinced that she had both the stomach and the armour for this fight, but her father had assured her that she did not, and then gave her no possible chance to try. And in retrospect, there was little Sumireko could do for her own peace of mind.

"I-I.. Should really get going.." Mahiru quietly whispered, looking at the ground.

Sumireko's chest ached and she took a step forward.

"No, please, stay, enjoy yourself." This had not come from Sumireko, but from Yuu, who now extended an inviting hand forward, placing it on Mahiru's bare shoulder. "I would feel more than honored if the person who's been so kind to Sumireko stayed."

He called her in such a familiar way, and that was enough to cause a storm within Banba to erupt.

Mahiru began to shake.

Not from fear.

But this time, it was from laughter.

"Why don't ya get your filthy hands of me?" Mahiru bitterly laughed in an amused tone.

Sumireko's eyes widened.

'_Oh no..'_

Mahiru spat on the ground and looked up, menacingly grinning.

"Yo. It's been a while."

'…_Shinya..'_

There was a loud _bang_.

"Did you guys hear that?" Chitaru asked, looking up from her drink. She had now been mingling with Hitsugi, Kouko and Suzu, since they didn't know anybody else.

Suzu laughed and raised her glass.

"We're in for quite the night."

"Outta the way!"

A loud voice yelled, kicking the balcony doors open.

"Is that.. Banba-san?" Kouko exclaimed?

Suzu took a sip of her wine, admiring the taste before speaking.

"Yes, but I believe we are in the presence of her more daring side tonight."

"Shinya?" Hitsugi breathed, shocked.

Chitaru brought a hand up and scratched her head.

"I though Banba-san had already..um..got passed that?"

"What's with all the noise?" Isuke asked, reaching the small group of Black Class members with Haruki flanking close behind.

"Woah, is that Shinya?" Haruki beamed forward, grabbing on to Isuke's shoulders to get a better view.

Isuke sighed and rubbed her temples, looking rather pensive and tired.

"Should have known this was going to happen. She should have kept that psycho locked up."

"Why are you so concerned, Inukai-san?" Kouko asked, adjusting her glasses.

"Let's just say we have some bad waters between us." Isuke bitterly smiled in response.

"Yo!" Shinya dashed passed the small group, carrying a shocked Sumireko bridal style.

"Ooh." Haruki mused, excitedly tightening her grip on Isuke's shoulders. "Off they go."

"Stop touching me."

Outside.

The night was cool and calm. Most of the campus was vacant because the majority of the students were either locked up in their dorms, or attending the wedding party.

The excessive _clack_ of heels against the ground echoed, bouncing off every surface. Shinya had already ran a formidable distance, and they were quite far from their original location.

"Ya know." Shinya panted. "You're alot heavier that you look. And that's coming from me."

"Could you please put me down Shinya-san?"

"And let fancy pants over there get ya? No chance in hell."

"I don't think flinging him across the balcony was exactly necessary."

Shinya released a combination of a loud laugh and a pant.

"Oh, he'll be fine."

Sumireko looked up and smiled.

She couldn't help but feel relief at the fact that Banba had done something so bold. Even if it wasn't technically her, it technically was.

She didn't know whether she should feel bad at the fact that her fiancé was flung who knows how many stories down into a pool, and that she had found it so relieving.

But she also knew that it was essential the she stopped noticing how the moonlit night enhanced her hair and features. Or the nuances of getting lost in her eye color, which highlighted the intimacy of their exchanged glances.

Shinya finally came to a stop at a secluded and desolate park somewhere in Myōjō. This place practically had it all.

The darkness came over them like a blanket. The only audible sound was that of their breathing and the faint trickle from the fountain. The stars shrouded the sky and the path shimmered as they walked under glowing orange park lights.

The benches were empty, not a single soul in sight.

Gently putting Sumireko down, Shinya decided to stretch.

"I still don't know how ya manage to weigh more than my hammer."

"My, my, isn't complaining about a ladies weight a rude thing?"

Shinya snickered, leaning her head back and relaxing.

"My apologies, Ojou-sama."

Sumireko began to shyly look around.

"Say.."

"Hm?"

"Why..um, why did you decide to join the party?" Sumireko was stuttering and hesitant. She did not like it when the unsure parts of her character began to show.

Shinya turned to completely face Sumireko, arching a brow and smiling her feral Shinya smile.

"What kind of question is that?"

"It's just that-"

"Mahiru was crying." Shinya spoke, serious, something that was considered very out of character for her.

"Crying?" Sumireko repeated in a sadder tone.

Shinya nodded and lazily fell on the empty park bench.

"See, ever since ya announced this whole wedding fiasco," Shinya waved her hands in explanation. "Mahiru has been nothing but a sad sore thumb."

"Oh." Sumireko felt physically and emotionally paralyzed. Though she knew that couldn't be true, because her prosthetics wouldn't just stop functioning.

She lost herself in thought for a moment. She had been so focused on flushing out her own feelings for the white haired girl, that she had not noticed how Mahiru herself was drowning in sadness and carrying around her own dark cloud.

Shinya stood up, bemused.

"And by the looks of things, I'd say that Yuu fellow ain't exactly your prince charming." She added with a shrug.

Sumireko frowned, seating herself on the same bench Shinya had just stood up from.

"It's not about whether he's prince charming or not.." Sumireo trailed off.

Shinya smirked and pinned down Hanabusa against the bench, leaning in more than she should, causing Sumireko to have her back completely against the backrest.

This caused a prickle of sensation, or elation in Sumireko's skin, that she wished she could stop, or control. For she did not know if what lay behind it was something real, or a mere desperate imagining that had transformed a short, intense encounter with Mahiru, into something more than a meaningful relationship.

"You don't want him."

"It's not about wanting him either." Sumireko tried to look away, but that was something Shinya was determined not to allow.

"Then what's it 'bout then?" Shinya still grinned.

"I-I…" Sumireko, for some reason, felt like crying. "It's for the company..my father already made the arrangements and-."

"Hey." Shinya tugged Sumireko's chin closer, their faces only centimeters apart. "Do you love him?" Shinya whispered. Sumireko could feel the other girls' warm breath clashing against her own.

Sumireko chocked on a combination of a stifled sob and a dry chuckle, her moist eyes now held Shinya's.

"No.. I-..I…" Sumireko whispered, stammering. Taking a deep and resolved breath. "I-" She cupped her white haired roommates' cheek and caressed the thin scar with her thumb. "-love you..Both of you..but, there's nothing that I can do about it.."

Shinya grinned and affectionately chuckled.

"That's all I needed."

The sweetness of the moment was now broken, but not unhappily, by Mahiru, whose wet eyes held a latent sparkle.

"Mahiru..san?"

Mahiru's breath got caught in her throat when she finally noticed that she was allowing Sumireko to willingly invade her personal bubble. Pale cheeks colored rose, as she deeply flushed, unable to continue holding Shinya's bold front, she awkwardly looked down.

"I'm sorry.." She spoke a clearly, to Sumireko's surprise, but quietly. "I- caused you a lot of trouble.." Mahiru spoke slowly and hesitantly.

"Sorry." She repeated one more time and began to withdraw.

Sumireko's breathing now sounded strained as if she was holding back emotions which were bubbling just beneath the surface. She carefully looked at Mahiru, grabbing her by the wrist, not allowing her to escape or break free.

Mahiru's eyes were beautiful. Her face was beautiful in every way. Her shoulders. Her hands. Her unmoving chest, because she held her breath…

"Say, Banda-san..?" Sumireko asked, once again composing herself. "Do you love me?"

Mahiru stayed quiet, shaking in panic.

"This may be a little selfish from my part." Sumireko tenderly chuckled. "But please..tell me not to marry him." She pressed on, tugging her closer, anxiety coloring her voice.. "Please…"

Mahiru didn't like to make choices in general. And this was more than just a simple choice. She wondered if it truly was alright for her to be selfish. Her dumb jealous needy selfishness could do more than just compromise her roommates' happiness and future.

"Please." Sumireko breathed out in a small whisper once again.

"I don't-" Mahiru looked away.

"You don't what?"

"-want you to marry him.." Mahiru admitted, shaking in embarrassment, selfishness, happiness and anger, plus any other emotion you could add.

"Why would that be?" Sumireko's voice was quiet and controlled now, almost seductive, as she looked at the other girl with the tenderest expression she could muster up. With every word she had been pulling Mahiru closer and closer until the other girl was finally resting untop of her lap in a type of straddling position.

Sumireko didn't care, no one was around

"Because…"

"Because?"

Mahiru swallowed and took a deep breath. She grabbed on to the other girls' shoulders, pulling her in for a gentle but forceful hug. She rested her head on her neck, releasing the hollow breath she had been holding in.

"Because I want you."

Sumireko didn't wait a second more. She threaded her fingers through Mahiru's hair pulling her slightly back, and captured her lips with her own.

Mahiru's eyes widened in response.

Panicking, she struggled under Sumireko's hold, trying to pull away, but Sumireko never relaxed her hold on the girl. She shut her eyes tighter and tightened her grip.

She was determined.

Locking a free hand on Mahiru's waist, she pulled her in, deepening the kiss.

Mahiru's head felt muddled, and her body felt weird all over. She stopped resisting and had no other choice but to give into the guilty pleasure that was the warm and soft sensation of Sumireko's lips.

At first she was hesitant against her roommates' urgent kiss, practically clumsy. But together they eventually relaxed and got into rhythm with one another.

Pulling away for air, they looked into eachothers glazed eyes. Burning blue eyes met with passionate reserved ones.

But with each passing second that their bodies were not in contact with one another, the longing became unbearable. Without a second to spare, Mahiru's parted lips hungrily and passionately crashed once more against Sumireko's. The warmth of her mouth sent insuppressible shivers along with an electric current through her body.

Mahiru snaked her arms around Sumireko's neck, impatient and wanting. Finally releasing all of her built up needs and frustrations, which Sumireko was more than happy to accept.

Mahiru's surprisingly dominant and needy side was more than a pleasant surprise.

But back at the event…

It was all but chaos.

**Authors Note: So I guess SumiBanba beat PinkPocky to the punchline. But fret not, our little idiotic duo will get their turn. This chapter was originally meant to be longer and more detailed, but I decided to divide it in two halves, since the concept of an 11,000 something word chapter is exhausting to me, and the fever doesn't help. Keeping that in mind, I'll go mistake hunting after my head stops pounding and my stomach stops turning.**

**Next chapter will be up by Saturday, hopefully.**

**Happy reading guys!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

The room got noisy then noisier as people began to murmur asking about the commotion. Security guards were all over the place, looking for whomever was responsible for fracturing every bone in their employers' body.

"Shit, we have to scram." Otoya excitedly yelled, looking around and taking a defensive pose.

"But we haven't done anything.." A bothered Shiena replied, putting her drink down.

Otoya laughed and brought her hands together, apologetically tilting her head to the side. "Oh? Force of habit, I guess?"

Shiena sighed.

"I was getting tired anyway." Shiena walked in direction of the immense double doors, stopping just a few feet away from Otoya. "Are you coming?"

Otoya blinked and she flashed a big genuine smile, her eyes displaying appreciative warmth. "Wait up!"

"Has anyone seen Isuke-san and Haruki-san?" Haru questioned, looking at her surroundings. She gently tugged on the sleeve of Tokaku's formal wear. Tokaku wasn't one for parties, and she didn't even want to come. But Haru had been so excited about finally going to a formal party that she couldn't say no.

"Haru had seen them around here a few moments ago… Haru's a little worried, didn't they seem a little flushed when they left?"

Tokaku took a gentle sip of wine from her own glass and defensively pulled Haru close and away from the upcoming and rushing security guards; causing a small _yelp_ to come out of Haru's mouth, and instigating an embarrassed blush.

"Maybe a little alcohol in our system is all we need every now and again to see things in a new light, wouldn't you agree?"

Back at the park.

"Hey, you kids shouldn't be hanging around at this hour." A gruff male voice interrupted. A voice which Sumireko recognized as one of Yuu's trusted body guards.

Sumireko frantically looked around, searching for escape.

"We have to go, Banba-san."

The source of the rough voice came in through the back of some shrubs, which decorated the park.

"I said hey!" Hey pointed the flashlight in their direction, accidentally shinning it brightly against Mahiru's face. A pained high-pitched cry escaped her lips and she began to frantically cover her eyes.

"Banba-san!" Sumireko grabbed her by the shoulders in an attempt to remove her from the direct light.

"No! Don't touch me!" She cried in response, pushing Sumireko's hand away in an abrupt motion. She tried to escape, but ultimately failed. Tripping over herself and with a _thud_, she fell down, and began to squirm away from the approaching man.

"Stay away!" Mahiru cried once more.

"Mahiru!" Sumireko pulled her hysterical friend from the ground, this time it was her turn to grab her bridal style, and she made a run for it. Cradling her in tightly against her chest while she ran.

"Don't let them get away!" Sumireko heard the same voice articulate orders in the distance.

As much as she wanted to keep her artificial limbs a secret, she had to use them to their fullest potential if she was to escape the men who were chasing after them.

Her elegant cream colored dress was not helping in the ordeal, because it kept getting in the way of her legs while she tried to run, dirtying it in the process.

But Sumireko had not thought fast enough, she had been cornered, and Mahiru was still too busy recovering to do anything.

She bit her lip and furrowed her brows in agitation. Looking up she noticed that the wall where they had been cornered was high, but not too high. She could jump over it. It would be an easy task for her, but she felt unsure on whether she should do it or not.

The Guard hesitantly approached them.

"Hanabusa-sama, please, quietly come with us. Master is hurt and worried." The tall man in a black suit explained. He was flanked by about seven more guards.

Sumireko looked back up to the top of the wall, and took a deep breath.

_'No other choice-'_

"Evening, gentleman!" Haruki's voice interrupted from behind all of them. "Cornering defenseless ladies like that doesn't look too good in the public eye." She giggled and waved her hands at Hanabusa.

Haruki was overly chipper, and her cheeks looked extremely flushed.

"Harukiiii, I told you not to say anything. We could have just stabbed them through their unsuspecting backs."

Isuke now came into view, she had half-wobbled-half-strode into view. Carelessly leaning against Haruki and holding on to her shoulder for support.

"..Sagae-san..Inukai-san?" Sumireko worriedly looked down into her arms, Mahiru had passed out.

"We saw that you were in a pinch, so we decided to come and help you out." Haruki huffed, giving her chest a slight punch, proudly putting her arms on her hips.

"Hey, stop being such a show-off-y idiot." Isuke angrily grumbled, repeatedly poking Haruki's cheek with a finger.

"Ahaha, sorry, sorry."

"Who are you? State your business." The Guard offensively asked, looking angrier than he had originally been.

"What? Are you giving me, Inukai Isuke, orders?" Isuke stammered forward. "Let me tell you something-"

"Are you two ..drunk?" Sumireko finally, and boldly, asked. She would expect this kind of random behavior from Haruki, but not from Isuke. Not in a million years. That girl lived out of her pride and image.

"We're noot." Isuke whined, accusingly pointing a weak finger at Sumireko.

"Hahaha, maybe a bit. Great wine, by the way. You sure have a good taste for the strong stuff, Sumireko." Haruki laughed and over expressed herself with gestures as she spoke.

"Someone contain them already" The main guard once again ordered. "Hanabusa-sama, tell your trampy friend to get lost. This is none of their business!" He commanded, particularly gesturing in Isuke's direction.

Isuke clenched her fists and gritted her teeth in uncontrollable agitation. She felt pissed.

"Hey, who are you calling a tramp you little-"

But Haruki felt furious.

Without being able to finish her sentence and before the guard was able to register anything, Haruki had sprinted at an affable speed towards the brute man and punched him square in the jaw.

The impact of her strong, heavy, fist caused what Isuke noted to be teeth, to scatter all over the place. Making the Guard crash against a nearby pole, slightly bending it upon impact.

"What the hell is wrong with her?" Another alarmed guard frantically yelled, not being able to comprehend how a girl could poses such strength and be able to knock a man five times her size out-cold in just one blow.

"Isuke-sama is not a tramp." Haruki cracked her knuckles, intently narrowing her eyes at her new prey, her features, somewhat wrinkling with frustration. The sight stunned Sumireko. She didn't know Haruki was capable of expressing something other than her carefree attitude.

Needless to say, because of the effect of the alcohol, Haruki did not hold back.

Sumireko hugged Mahiru's limp and unconscious body close to her.

"I'm." She took a deep breath and lifted her eyes to Isuke, who walked in her direction while Haruki busied herself with the uninvited guests. "I'm in your dept."

Isuke waved a careless and indifferent hand, finally reaching Sumireko and agreeably leaving the cleaning up to her roommate.

"As much as Isuke would love to have you squirm under her command." She huffed her chest and crossed her arms, looking at Haruki with an overwhelming sense of pride. "If you owe any of us anything, I guess it woud be to her."

Haruki used her massive and abnormal strength to lift one of the guards completely up, and flung him against another offensive one.

"Feeling impressed yet, Isuke-sama?" Haruki happily yelled over her shoulder, since she was giving the three other girls her back, defending them.

Giving her nail her casual bored buff, Isuke smiled.

"What? You think you can impress Isuke with just that?"

Haruki grinned and adjusted her stance to that of combat, finally kicking her heels off.

"Get ready to be blown away then." Haruki attentively locked on her next victim who began to retreat backwards from fear.

The Guard fell backwards and began to squirm away, lifting a protective hand over his face. "Please no, I was just following orders!" He begged.

"We'll take care of this, birthday girl." Isuke patted Sumireko's back, causing the girl to be pushed slightly forward. "You go play hooky with useless over there." She finished pointing at an unconscious Banba.

Sumireko frowned at the accusation, but her educated instincts got the best of her. "Inukai-san, it's a wedding party." She corrected.

"Oh? So that's what it was." Isuke mumbled, furrowing her brows and squinting, trying to make sense of her own words.

"GAH." An alarmed male voice yelled when he crashed against the nearby trash bins.

"Thank you." Sumireko hesitated, but gratitude won over pride. "For assisting us. Even you are capable of being…less unpleasant, I guess."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Isuke grumbled back, offensively looking away.

Sumireko sprinted out of sight, in the direction of her shared room with Mahiru. She would probably let the unconscious girl properly rest there. They've had an exhausting night so far.

"Well that took care of it." Haruki happily claimed, walking towards Isuke.

The Guards were sprawled all over the place, the still conscious ones, groaned in pain.

"Hm?" Isuke grinned and watched after Haruki as she got closer.

"What? Were you even looking?" Haruki whined. If she had been a dog, her ears would have probably dropped right there and then. "I tried so hard to be the hero for you."

"I think I'm more of an antagonist kind of person." Isuke mused, still looking at Haruki and feeling something strange, a type of switch, flip inside her

"Well I've never been much of a villain, but if Isuke-sama wishe-" losing her balance, Haruki clumsily, and drunkenly, tripped, falling on the ground.

Isuke could not contain the laughter that followed. She clutched her stomach and bent forward unable to understand why Haruki tripping had been the most amusing thing she has ever seen.

Alcohol. Probably. Nobody is quite themselves when they drink. Even if they do say that your real person shows when your brain is induced. Making you do things you'd probably never do sober.

Haruki grinned, testing. She dashed up and lifted Isuke up, causing Isuke to flush even more than she already was, upon contact.

"What are you doing? Put me down!"

Still running with Isuke in hand, Haruki stopped just in front of a peaceful water fountain.

"Your wish is my command, Isuke-sama."

"Haruki don't!"

Without so much as a second thought, Haruki effortlessly dropped Isuke into what appeared to be freezing fountain water, and after a few good minutes of endless laughter from her part, Isuke resolved to do what any other good Samaritan would do.

She extended a hand forward, tightly grabbing Haruki's wristed and pulled her forward and off-balance, causing an enormous splash.

This is what most people would consider worry free and peaceful days, right?

After a few rounds of harmless wrestling and a lot of complaining from Isuke's part, Haruki decided that it was time to get out. The water was freezing and she didn't want Isuke to catch a cold.

Haruki took Isuke's hand into hers and pulled her up from the water.

To Isuke, it nearly stole her breath how natural and right their hands felt together, while her mind screamed at her that everything about it should be wrong. She wondered when exactly she let herself cross the imaginary line she had drawn.

With a tired sigh, Haruki quietly sat down at the edge of the fountain, still chuckling in amusement. Isuke followed.

Looking at Haruki, Isuke began to feel herself grow warm. Her face flushed, and she reached for the bottle of wine that lay on the ground. The bottle which Haruki had carried around after hazily convincing Isuke that it would be a great idea to steal it. _They won't even miss it_. Haruki had _reasoned_, after a few shots.

Isuke shook her head, and took a sip directly from the bottle, muddling her head even more than it already was.

"You look wonderful." Isuke managed, looking rather happy and reclining her body against that of her red haired companion.

Haruki grinned, taking the bottle out of Isuke's hand and taking a gulp herself.

"So do you."

"I know." Isuke deadpanned, causing Haruki to laugh.

Taking a breath, Isuke smiled and felt a small measure of relief.

"Then again, Isuke-sama is always wonderful herself." Haruki happily murmured inspecting the bottle on her hand, and looking at her companion. "Really beautiful." Haruki whispered, pushing a pink strand of hair away from Isuke's face.

"Stop being so cliché." Isuke complained, giving Haruki's close face a gentle and playful push.

Reflexively, Haruki grabbed Isuke's hand and pulled her forward, feeling a strong pang of unknown emotion. She frowned and felt rather confused. Intently staring at Isuke, she couldn't control the weird urge she now felt. She didn't even know what it was.

She leaned in: "Please, look at me." Haruki whispered, with a hint of determination in her voice. She didn't quite understand why, but something in the back of her head was telling her to control herself, while a louder voice was yelling at her to monopolize the beautiful girl who sat next to her.

Isuke looked up, raising a brow and shooting Haruki a confused look.

"What's wrong with you?" Isuke unknowingly laughed. "Sounding all serious out of the blue."

Completely pressing her body against Isuke's, Haruki found her way, and nuzzled Isuke's neck. Causing the girl to let a small surprised gasp.

"H-Haruki."Isuke tried her best to struggle, but this just made Haruki pull her in closer and unbashfully breathe in her scent. "What is it? L-let go of me!"

This weird disobeying side to Haruki was surprising, and against Isuke's wishes, completely and utterly arousing.

"Isuke." Haruki breathed, brushing her lips against Isuke's neck, beginning to tenderly kiss, suck, and lick.

Isuke's eyes widened and she reflexively began to fidget. Growing warmer than she had already been, her cheeks flushed with every deep color within the red spectrum.

"H-hey!" Isuke struggled. "That's 'Isuke-sama' to you." She somehow managed to correct. Isuke's body had completely taken a shade of red and her breathing became ragged.

"Isuke-sama." Haruki whispered and continued on with her business.

She wondered what it was she felt and what was causing her to be so out of control right now. Haruki had not known how much she actually desired Isuke. Never in her life had she felt the way she did; she had never felt desire in general.

Haruki was well aware that she was dumbly and utterly dead drunk, but she was conscious of what she was doing, she just didn't know how to stop.

Correction, she did not want to stop.

There was a confusing fire that engulfed her body. The agonizing sensation of wanting to physically touch Isuke, and..

And?

"H-Haruki! Let go!" Isuke's breathing began to get sharper and sharper, as Haruki continued to attack her neck, ignoring the other girls pleads.

Isuke was already at her limit.

But the detail is, Haruki had not touched her yet. Haruki had not even kissed her.

And Isuke, really wanted her to.

But Haruki's hands just rested on Isuke's side, and she had only made intentional contact with her neck.

No longer being able to control what she had been long suppressing now since Haruki made initial contact with her neck, Isuke closed her eyes, and unwillingly and unintentionally moaned out Haruki's name, tightly gripping the other girls' shoulders.

Haruki stopped.

The voice in the back of her head grew louder and started screaming, and scolding her.

She's seen enough T.V. commercials to know that whatever it is she wanted to do, whatever it was, that this was not the right way to do it. Haruki never had any particular interest or need for whatever this was. Isuke has been the only person who triggered the unexpected emotions. So she felt lost, and a little scared.

"Haruki?" Isuke, confused, looked down at Haruki, only to have her eyes meet with intense hungry gold ones.

"N-no."

"No..?" Isuke's lips trembled.

"I can't…We can't..." Haruki pulled back. "I won't."

Isuke's eyes widened. Was this fool actually rejecting her?

"This isn't right. I can't do this." Haruki whispered and hung her head for a second, and pulled back.

"Do you not want me?" Isuke whimpered, practically letting a few sobs color her voice.

Both of them really were dead drunk.

"It's not that, ofcourse I do, I mean, I think I do.. I-I…I don't know." Haruki began rambling, covering her face with a hand, and running her other hand on her hair. Feeling uneasy and confused.

"Then why won't you? Isuke leaned forward, encircling her arms around Haruki's neck

"Because.."

Isuke gently took the hand which covered Haruki's face into hers, and pulled it away from her face. Revealing a confused and anxious looking Haruki.

"Kiss me." Isuke whispered, getting close. Using her own hand, she guided the one she had removed from Haruki's face to cup her own cheek.

"What..?"

"If you want to figure it out, let me help you." Isuke's voice was a low and seductive whisper.

Haruki looked away and pushed Isuke back.

"I think…we should go to bed..."

"No." Isuke whined. "It's clear that we both want this. So why won't you take it, you thick-headed Pocky eating idiot?"

Isuke was too busy being angry at Haruki to feel angry at herself. This would have been considered a painful pride crushing situation. And she was too drunk to know that she was supposed to be angry at herself in the first place.

"Isuke..am I dumb?"

Isuke blankly stared at Haruki, who had chosen this very moment to voice out her insecurities.

Isuke pulled back to get a better look.

"What?"

"Am I dumb?" Haruki repeated.

"Ofcourse you are." Isuke did not hesitate to confirm this, because Haruki was in fact doing what Haruki did best right now.

Be an idiot.

"Oh." Haruki straightened herself up. "No, it's just that..you know.."

"What is it?" Isuke asked, furious and impatient.

"I always thought you had some sort of rich heir waiting for you somewhere. And if not, it'd be pretty easy to find one..I mean." Haruki weakly spoke, laughing nervously and looking down as she did.

She mentally cringed, worried that she might have revealed too much.

Isuke frowned, and grabbed Haruki by the chin, forcing face to face confrontation.

"What are you implying?" She sternly asked.

Haruki took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"I'm not good enough." She boldly and surely admitted. "As much as I want to...I can't give you what you want or what you need." She took another deep and shaky breath. "And I realize this now.. I don't know if it's the cocktail or the strong shots talking here..." Haruki opened her eyes and shyly smiled. Once again locking their eyes. "But I really do care for you, Isuke."

Haruki felt a strong impulse to brush away a long strand of stray hair that had fallen across Isuke's face, but kept her hands firmly in place. Afraid of losing any inch of resolve to her alcohol induced brain if she so much as tried.

Isuke breathed out a combination of a scoff and a laugh and shook her head, pulling Haruki in and resting her forehead against Haruki's.

Haruki looked away bashfully. "Sorry." She murmured, but her concern began to melt when Isuke's hand cupped the back of her neck.

"Haruki, I don't care about what you can or can't provide. I really don't care about your social status or whether you have to work yourself to death to earn a living. I don't care about how you have sloppy eating habits or fail to have any decent fashion sense - and you should really do something about that horrible manicure, because it's been driving me crazy for days now and-"

Haruki smiled and chuckled, raising a teasing brow. "Are you going somewhere with this, 'cause you're killing me here."

"Sorry." Isuke affectionately caressed the top of Haruki's tense brow. "I'm saying that I accept you for you." Isuke frowned to herself. "I expect no more and no less."

"Isuke-sama should have higher expectations." Haruki mumbled, tenderly grazing her nose against Isuke's.

"Yeah, but you've somehow managed to reduce them to whatever they have now become." Isuke closed her eyes and yawned tugging Haruki even closer. "You better take full responsibility for it." She now sleepily mumbled. Now that the alcohol had completely taken its toll on her, Isuke no longer had the energy to even properly hold herself up.

"Leave it to you, to ruin the moment." Isuke grumbled, sighing, and losing consciousness "I can't guarantee you another chance like this."

Haruki gently brushed a few wet strands of hair away from Isuke's face. Closing her eyes, she tenderly brushed her lips against Isuke's forehead.

Haruki softly chuckled.

"I'm sorry for being so incompetent." Haruki whispered, more to herself than to Isuke. "Please be patient a little longer. Until I can become someone worthy of standing next to you."

'_Idiot.'_

The following morning.

Automatically opening her eyes, Isuke blinked against the light that entered through the window.. Her throat felt horribly dry and constricted, causing her to feel unbelievably thirsty. Her body felt heavy like bricks, and that just added to how disoriented and tired she was; completely unaware of her surroundings.

Finally coming to her senses she realized that she was back in the dorm room.

It had been a hazy, and wet walk back to the room, resulting in her only being able to recall vague fragments of last nights' events.

Trying to get up, she found this mundane action more complicated than it should have been. Her body ached and her head was pounding. Giving up, she decided to sleep off whatever dumb hangover she was experiencing, class could wait. It's not like it was ever a priority.

Flopping herself back on the bed, she felt herself hit something that was either too hard or weirdly soft, making her jolt upright in response.

Isuke's features twisted a little when she realized that, by the looks of things, she had been sleeping untop of Haruki. Their legs were a tangled mess of limbs.

Isuke panicked and cursed herself. If it hadn't been for the fact that her head was killing her, she would have probably reacted faster, differently. Probably smacked Haruki for sneaking into her bed.

But she still felt as if she was in a drunken haze.

And she also realized, that she wasn't even on her own bed. They were both in Haruki's. Knowing how chivalrous she was by nature, Haruki probably did her best to properly escort Isuke back to the room, but gave into her own exhaustion once they were in the confined safety of the bedroom.

Looking down at the sleeping girl under her, Isuke noticed how peaceful Haruki looked. Contrary to the days were she suffered from insomnia and would lay awake, restless.

A peaceful and soft smile plastered itself in Isuke's lips. And she was too tired to care about it. Sighing in agonizing defeat, she began to run her hand through Haruki's red hair, tangling and twirling the still damp strands around her fingers. Slowly, she brought her hand all the way down to Haruki's face, tracing the soft features with a finger.

Isuke reluctantly let her hand fall from the girls' features, which caused Haruki to sleepily and unknowingly smile in her sleep, wrinkling her nose. Isuke wondered when she had let it get to this point.

She had never asked for a person whose absence in the middle of the night would cause her distress. Isuke couldn't bare her own inanity. As much as the realization should have caused her to drown herself into a shell of sullenness and denial. It didn't.

Isuke slightly frowned to herself, gently sweeping Haruki's bangs out of her face.

As much as she had tried to deny it to herself in the past, it was clear as day to her, and utterly undeniable that she had, in fact, developed feelings for Haruki.

The idiotic Pocky eater.

"Mmm." Haruki made a sound, her eyebrows twitching.

Isuke went rigid and drew her hand back, thinking that Haruki was waking up, and would catch them in this ridiculously questionable position.

Slightly shifting, Haruki barely managed to open her eyes, causing her to look at Isuke through half-closed exhausted ones.

Haruki weakly smiled.

The kind of smile that would melt your heart and-

No.

Isuke shook her head, pushing the thoughts to the furthest extremities of her brain, hoping they'd stay there. In response Haruki closed her eyes once more, giving into exhaustion. With a smile still in place, she brought a hand forward. She tenderly circled them around Isuke's back and pulled her into a tight bear-like-hold-of-a-hug.

"Isuke." Haruki sleepily mumbled.

That made the pink haired girl blush a deep color of scarlet.

Isuke tried to squirm away but found her efforts futile. Haruki was too strong, even when she looked like a hibernating bear.

Isuke once more tried to sit up, which was not an easy task against the assorted, solicitous hands that encouraged her back into a resting position.

Sighing, she gave up and listens to her instincts, which told her to sleep.

_'You've gone weak.'_

She shyly nuzzled into Haruki's neck and released a tired sigh. Closing her eyes, she smiled and rested her head in Haruki's chest, listening to the rhythmic lub-dubbing of Haruki's beating heart.

Isuke quickly fell back asleep, with the semblance of a contempt child.

A few hours later, it was Haruki's turn to wake up and the smirk on her face came all too easily.

Haruki woke up to the sounds of construction work just around the school premises. Sunshine was creeping through the window.

Stretching, she arched her lower back until her fingers grazed the bed headboard. She glanced over to the bedside table and she saw the time illuminated on the alarm clock.

With the previous night events, she had fallen asleep without setting up the alarm. They were late for class.

Responding to her initial instinct, Haruki calculated how she would get up, bathe, change and make it to class before she missed another lecture. But the presence in her mind made her notice the girl who soundly slept beside her.

Haruki stiffened and hazarded a glance in Isuke's direction.

'_I'm dead.'_ She meekly thought to herself, gulping in actual fear.

Isuke was on her side, facing Haruki, with her hands curled near her face. Her eyes were loosely shut.

Could this be considered a type of spooning?

Watching her sleep, Haruki could not ignore the grin that came to her face.

Isuke's lips were slightly parted and Haurki could hear the other girls even intake and release of air.

Haruki couldn't help herself any longer, she daringly and playfully poked Isuke's cheek. It was the kind of feeling an animal lover would get whenever they saw a playful puppy.

'_Except Isuke-sama is more of a cat.'_

Isuke finally stirred and began to stretch, making an adorable noise that resembles a baby pterodactyl, causing Haruki to involuntarily stiffen, grow anxious and a little excited. Intently searching Isuke's face, Haruki wondered if she had overstepped some sort of unspoken boundary.

Haruki sat up slightly and leaned her weight on her elbow.

Finally and completely waking up, Isuke narrowed her amber eyes forward, trying to make sense of things once again. She squinted at the weak rays of the suns light. Her pink hair, long and loose, framed her face. The light bounced off a few adorable strands of wildly out of place hair, contrasting her normally diligent impeccable styled hair.

"'Morning." Haruki greeted.

"Shut up." Isuke grumbled, sleepily rubbing her yes. "What time is it?"

"Just after eleven."

Isuke gave a sleepy sigh and sat up, ranking her fingers through her messy hair in an attempt to even it out. Haruki could no longer help her grin. Isuke was adorably disgruntled this morning.

"Well you were never much of a morning person anyways, Isuke-sama."

Covering her mouth, Isuke released a yawn and rubbed her eyes again, she was clearly still in a haze.

"Not really."

Grabbing one of Isuke's limp sleepy hands, Haruki tentatively began playing with her fingers causing Isuke to scowl.

"What are you doing?" Isuke asked, slightly frowning.

"Nothing." Haruki murmured in a low burr, shrugging.

Isuke now set her jaw hard.

"About last night…" She tried. "What exactly happened?" She finally asked.

"I really don't know." Haruki chuckled.

"Explain to me how exactly this is funny?" Isuke irritably demanded, drawing her hand back.

"It just is." Haruki teased, laughing a warm and loud laugh.

"No it's not." Isuke complained, frowning, she looked away. Embarrassed by the fact that she was being affected by whatever Haruki was doing so early in the morning.

"It's a little amusing." Haruki admitted, now busying herself with a stand of Isuke's hair. After a short pause Haruki opted to get up. As much as she would have liked to stay in bed, especially with a somewhat tame Isuke, she was just not that kind of person. She hated to waste the day in bed. Especially if she had the privilege of going out and moving around. Unlike her mother..

Haruki finally got up and stretched. They had fallen asleep in their undergarments, which means Haruki wore a white tee and pant-like underwear and Isuke wore…

She quickly brought the bed sheet up to her neck, bashfully covering herself.

Haruki noticed this and chuckled. Isuke wore something a little too revealing, and she wondered why she had chosen now to be all self-conscious and bashful about exposing too much skin.

Isuke tugged the sheets closer and hugged her body. A brief and heavy silence was shared

"Nothing happened last night." Isuke stated, answering Haruki's un-verbalized question. Her voice held a sour disappointing note and she ruefully looked down. Haruki hung her head forward and rubbed the back of her head, slightly tuning away from Isuke. They exchanged another short silence that somehow managed to make both of them feel a little awkward and embarrassed.

Haruki felt at a loss for words, she didn't know what to say. Her eyes looked apologetic and sad. She had never been put in this kind of situation. She never thought that she would even be in this situation. Especially not with Isuke.

Haruki sat down on the edge of the bed, and kindly smiled, her features soft but troubled. Silently she inched her hand towards Isuke and brushed the hair that covered her neck back, causing Isuke to close her eyes at the touch.

Leaning forward a bit, Haruki finally found a small mark, which looked like a bruise around Isuke's neck. She leaned all the way in causing Isuke's breath to halt on its way out and she stiffened. Gently pressing her lips against the mark, Haruki felt a pang of shame and resentment. Not because she had failed to follow through, but because she had left a mark on Isuke's impeccable body.

"Sorry." She mumbled.

Groaning, and flushed, Isuke could no longer take it.

In one swift movement she pulled Haruki by the wrist all the way down to the bed. Isuke lay untop of the wide-eyed and completely startled Haruki, causing Haruki to gulp.

Haruki began to feel a sense of panic begin to take control. Her first instinct was to look away from the accusing and penetrating gaze of Inukai Isuke.

"Look at me." Isuke commanded. "Look."

Swallowing once more, Haruki made the bold choice of looking, but the sudden movement brought their faces too close together. Isuke's eyes held the crushing liquidity of Haruki's for a moment.

"I-Isuke-sama?" Haruki nervously fidgeted.

Dropping her glance to Haruki's mouth, her lips, slightly parted, and to Haruki's surprise, she felt Isuke move closer. Isuke felt every part of her body arouse with knowing desire.

Harukis stared at her, and feeling her own face beginning to heat she looked down, dropping her gaze. She suddenly felt even more awkward.

Haruki swallowed again.

She really did want Isuke, but never being put in this kind of situation; never feeling arousal nor desire for anybody else made her feel clumsy and unsure.

"We're…going to be late." She finally spoke, shyly smiling and trying to get up.

Isuke glared, pinning Haruki down harder.

"Why do you keep hesitating?"

Haruki returned Isuke's glare with a shy smile.

"Because I-"

The loud interrupting melody of Haruki's phone went off, echoing around the tense room.

Haruki paled.

It was a ringtone she had set up in particular for _that_ caller ID.

It was the kind of ringtone that would pull her back from whatever cloud she was in and planted her feet firmly back on the ground. That very same ringtone that would remind her that she had other priorities, and that she couldn't try anything with Isuke, even if she really wanted to.

It was the Hospital.

"Excuse me." Haruki seriously and swiftly got up, gently pushing Isuke's shoulders forward, causing her to get off.

Isuke shot Haruki a questioning and somewhat pissed look, while the other girl frantically rummaged through the pocket of the skirt she had left lying around.

"Hello?" She quickly answered, soon after flipping it open. Isuke noticed how her hands formed into small fists.

There was a silence in the room as Haruki patiently listened to whatever the person from the other line was saying.

A small noise, a barely discernable whimper spilled from her tense mouth.

"What is it?" Isuke asked, now getting up herself. "What happened?"

Haruki closed her flip-phone and turned to look at Isuke.

Her eyes were solemn and her breathing began to hitch.

She gave Isuke a look. That look she would get whenever she was asked about her parents by clueless students. The same look she had in her eyes when Hakuto had suddenly decided to taint Haruki's bleak life in a dark shade of gray; which she frequently struggled to hide.

It was pain, worry, anxiety and dread in their most raw forms.

Haruki swallowed. "I'm not sure."

The hospital corridor was stuffy and the air had an undertone of bleach. The walls were a magnolia color and they held traces of scrapes in certain places. Probably from the hundreds of trolleys that had bumped into them.

The pictures on the walls were cheap benign prints of uplifting scenes. And above, the double doors had large blue plastic signs with the areas of the hospital that lie ahead.

Haruki practically ran to the reception desk, and stated her business and she was only given a small form and was asked to _please sit down_ and wait.

The common area on the ward was mostly composed of a small television and plastic chairs.

It was just about as comfortable as a cramped train station.

Haruki went and talked to the first nurse, and she only gave her a card number and asked her to patiently wait yet again.

Accidents and emergencies, kept coming in one after another. The wide entrances automatic sliding glass doors were constantly sliding open and the shutting closed at the same calm pace.

Ambulances were lined up outside, and the paramedics wheeled in patients on trollies.

Three agonizing silent hours passed, and Haruki was still in the same position she had been when they first sat down: covering her face with her hands, and slumping her shoulders in obvious stress and agitation.

Haruki had decided to not inform her family about her whereabouts and the situation for the time being. She didn't want to alarm them.

"Enough of this!" Isuke stood from her uncomfortably rough and solid chair and began to viciously look around.

She had been quick to get dressed and accompany Haruki, against her wishes. Isuke did not plan on letting Haruki face whatever lay ahead by herself.

Haruki uncovered her face and curiously looked at her companion.

"Isuke-sama?"

Isuke eyes narrowed when they finally landed on her target.

The same nurse that had attended Haruki was leisurely walking by the T.V., sipping coffee and browsing through a fashion magazine she carried.

"Haruki."

"Yeah?"

Isuke reached into the pocket of her skirt as removed what appeared to be two crumpled dollar bills.

"Go get me something to eat. I'm starving." Isuke sternly demanded. Her eyes softening when they met with Haruki's downcast ones. "Please."

Haruki carefully got up and tried her best to manage her usual grin.

"What would you like?" Haruki's asked, her voice was low, controlled and somewhat sad.

"I don't know, go get me some Pocky or something."

"But don't you hate Pocky because its poor people fo-"

"Just go."

Haruki gave Isuke a questionable look but decided to not push it any further and grabbed the bills.

"I won't be long." Haruki said, turning away and doing her best to look as natural as possible.

But Isuke could tell that she was forcing herself.

Finally, Haruki had gone out of sight, into another room in search for the treats.

"You." Isuke growled, pointing at the nurse, striding towards her at a fast pace. "Do you know how long we've been waiting her like a couple of idiots waiting for you incompetent fools to start doing your job right?" Isuke leaned forward, pointing as she spoke, causing the big boned nurse to recoil back with a surprised look.

"Excuse me?"

"And what's with that depressing nail color? Isuke feels disgusted just being within your presence."

The nurse looked dumbfounded, unable to articulate a single word in response.

"Now, putting aside your unpleasant person, if you don't let Haruki go see her mother right in this instant, Isuke is going to get furious."

This time, Isuke spoke with a poisonous smile and a sharp tone. She brought her hands together and took a step forward, causing the nurse to take a step back, getting herself pinned against the wall.

"And you don't want Isuke to be mad, right?"

The nurse wordlessly stared, genuinely terrified for some reason she couldn't quite understand herself.

"What's going on here?" A high-pitched voice offered.

Isuke turned around and noticed another nurse. This one looked younger and more appealing than the old hag Isuke was interrogating.

"This rapscallion is threatening me!" The older nurse loudly announced, pointing a shaky finger at Isuke.

"Rapscallion?" Isuke fumed.

"How may I be of assistance, miss?" The younger nurse offered, in hopes of calming what in her eyes, appeared to be a deranged person.

"Yes please, Isuke wants to get this little confrontation over with before Haruki-"

"Haruki?" The younger nurse interrupted. "You mean Sagae Haruki?"

Isuke arched a brow and folded her hands.

"Yes, that one." Isuke confirmed, still feeling rather perplexed.

"My apologies ma'am! We didn't know you were with Sagae-san." The younger nurse bowed and stayed in that position while she spoke. "Where is Sagae-san?" She asked, straightening herself.

"She'll be back here shortly." Isuke simply replied, inspecting the young nurse.

"Oh, well." The young nurse took out a pen from her pocket and signed a blue form on her clipboard. "Give this to the receptionist in the next room." She gave Isuke the blue slip and pointed at a distant door. "She should take you to where you need to go. Again, please give Sagae-san our deepest apologies."

Isuke eyed the paper in her hand and sighed, annoyed but glad that they were finally able to accomplish something.

"Thanks." She simply replied, turning away.

As grateful as she was about the young nurses' assistance, she couldn't help but feel a surge or irritation when she familiarized herself with Haruki.

Isuke sat back down on her chair and waited a few minutes until Haruki finally came into view.

"So I don't know which flavor you liked best, so I got you-"

"Here." Isuke shoved the blue slip into Haruki's chest. "Let's go already."

Haruki read the contents of the familiar paper.

"How did you get this?"

Isuke grinned, remembering how she had inflicted fear on the incompetent employee earlier.

"Isuke has her ways." She sweetly replied.

"Ah, here you go." Haruki offered with a grin what appeared to be strawberry flavored Pocky. "Wouldn't want you starving."

Haruki looked down at the paper again and offered a small glance at Isuke. She noticed how her pink-haired roommate glared at an older woman who sat reading her magazine, and stuck her tongue out for a millisecond.

The woman shuddered in response and quickly looked away after their eyes met.

Haruki smiled and released a small laugh, rubbing the back of her neck. Leave it to Isuke to somehow and unknowingly have the ability to make Haruki feel better no matter what the circumstance.

_'...what did you do?' _

"What are you giggling at?" Isuke snapped.

"Nothing, nothing." Haruki brought the paper up into view. "Thanks."

"Let's just go, your mother is waiting." Isuke bashfully and impatiently said.

They followed the instructions giving to Isuke and went into the other room, handing in the paper at the receptionist.

She gave them a small smile, almost apologetic, and escorted them to what seemed to be the more private and secluded area of the hospital.

**Authors Note: To those re-reading, the part I removed will be in the next chapter. To those reading for the first time: Carry on, and enjoy.**

**Update will be out in a few.**


	11. Chapter 11

**IMPORTANT: The hospital bit from the last chapter has been removed and edited. It's in this chapter now. Yes I added a lot of things…so…read it? Who knows, maybe the outcome will be different. **

**Chapter 11**

On the private ward, the atmosphere was completely different.

The air had a perfumed scent, and the seats were plush. Every surface was dustless. The nurses were unhurried, and they moved with a serene purposefulness from room to room on their rounds.

There were vases of flowers and beautiful framed pieces of art on the walls. In the corridor there was a water dispenser which silently hummed, and in most rooms the sound of the television could be heard.

"Haruki-san?" Another overly familiar voice called, gaining both Isuke's and Haruki's attention.

Haruki waved a hand in greeting and smiled at the coming nurse.

"We've been..waiting for you..." The nurse offered, unable to look Haruki in the eye.

"We got a little sidetracked, I guess." Haruki explained.

After this they exchanged a few pleasantries and the receptionist who had originally escorted them left, to go back to her own post.

"How is she?" Isuke finally heard Haruki ask.

Haruki swallowed and awaited the response. She was nervous.

No.

She was terrified.

And this was more than obvious knowledge. She had been doing her best to keep it together and not break down, exposing her fragile mindset.

"I'm sorry, I can't answer that, because I've only heard word of it. You should go see the doctor, he's waiting for you at the office."

Haruki held back the persistent urge to release all her bottled up emotions.

The way the nurse Haruki recognized as usually a bubbly, bright and social person was being ambiguous and guilty. This didn't look good at all.

"Ok-" Haruki's voice broke in a rasp. She quickly cleared her throat to disguise it and smiled at the nurse. "Thanks."

After they exchanged a brief goodbye, the nurse was off.

Isuke kept her eyes on Haruki and tentatively placed a hand on her shoulder, giving it a brief squeeze.

She really was no good at consoling others.

Haruki took a deep breath and covered Isuke's hand with her own.

"It's fine."

Haruki smiled.

"It's fine." She repeated, this time more to herself.

Both of them silently walked to the office, where the doctor waited for Haruki. With each echoing step, Haruki could feel herself growing colder and colder.

Finally reaching the door, she put her hand on the door knob and looked at Isuke.

"You know." Haruki habitually, and nervously, scratched her head, slightly ruffling her already casually messy hairstyle. "You don't have to be here.."

"I'm not leaving you alone here, Haruki." She leaned back and crossed her arms, noticing how unstable Haruki actually looked beneath her somewhat calm exterior. "Not like this." Isuke simply stated, starting to feel a bit uneasy at the thought that she was just contributing to Haruki's already notable discomfort.

"I just don't want to trouble you with my own family issues. 'Cause you probably have other things to do and-"

But one thing that defined Isuke was her stubbornness.

"Excuse us." Isuke simple stated, pushing open the door which led into the cold and depressingly-blue colored, doctor's office.

The room was heavily decorated with books, plants and pictures of what Isuke presumed to be friends and family members. The doctor sat on his chair, distracted with his laptop. He was of average height, and a little over-weight. His only distinguishable features were his balding head and messy beard.

He finally noticed the girls before him and stood up, gesturing for them to sit down in the leather chairs that were neatly placed in front of his paper-filled desk.

"Please, sit. It's good to see you Haruki-san. Have you been well?"

Haruki sat down and politely smiled.

"Yeah, everything's been fine."

'_Up until now..'_

The doctor, noticed Isuke and took his sweet time, rudely admiring the girl from head to toe. Clearly distracted. This caused Isuke to protectively cross her arms and scowl at the doctors' uninvited stare.

Noticing this, Haruki loudly cleared her throat.

"Sir."

Coming back to his sense, the doctor felt embarrassed, and began to rub his beard. He finally sat down and directed his attention to Haruki.

"I apologize for the inconvenience. But I had to inform you that your mom requires immediate surgery. So if you would please-" The doctor rummaged through a folder and removed a small pack of papers. "Sign these, allowing us to proceed."

Haruki took the papers into her hand and anxiously scanned through the contents. "What happened? Why does she need surgery?" A tinge of both shock and panic flickered in Haruki's tone.

The doctor cleared his throat and paled, looking rather uneasy.

"We have…located a blood clot in the upper region of your mothers' brain. If this continues…um, the swelling of the area could induce a coma. This…could also lead to congestive heart failure."

Isuke sat forward. "What?"

"Read the documents, but we are going to have to start the procedure as soon as possible." The doctor stood up and offered Haruki a pen. "Please allow us to follow with more drastic methods."

"Will this save her life?" Haruki muttered, furrowing her brows while she continued to read over the papers.

"If everything runs smoothly." The doctor reassured.

"Are there any risks?" Isuke skeptically interrupted, extending a hand in Haruki's direction, and preventing her from signing the papers.

The doctor remorsefully glared at Isuke.

Something wasn't right.

"Every drastic medical procedure has its risks, ma'am. But right now, the consequences out-weigh any risk."

"Can we hear 'em?" Haruki quietly asked. Looking at the doctor with a pained and anxious look.

Sighing, the doctor sat back don't in his chair. "Very well."

Seven hours was a long time to wait and try not to worry.

Isuke opened her eyes, waking up.

She had not even realized that she had dozed-off to begin with.

Her neck was killing her and her body ached in random places due to the awkward and uncomfortable position she was in. There are little to no amount of possible sleeping choices when it came to hospitals. Especially when it came to hard chairs; not to mention sleeping positions.

Isuke scanned the waiting room, which was filled with both impatient visitors, and patients who had yet to be attended.

"There's still no update." Haruki quietly informed Isuke from the neighboring chair.

Isuke finally remembered why she was still in the hospital.

The doctor had explained both the pros and the cons of the surgery. And after taking every word into careful consideration, Haruki gave her consent and signed the papers.

He had said that the procedure would last about six to seven hours, and that they would receive updates between the hours.

Isuke sighed and noticed something on her lap.

It was Haruki's blazer.

From what Isuke could tell, since she wasn't freezing to death soon after waking up, and the waiting room was below Antarctic cold, Haruki must have covered her with it soon after she dozed off.

This made Isuke feel slightly ashamed. She was here to support Haruki, not take backbreaking naps.

"You should go back." Haruki quietly suggested, again.

"Do you not want me here?" Isuke indifferently managed within a yawn, repositioning herself on the chair.

"No, it's not that. It's just that you look tired."

"You look pretty tired yourself, you know." Isuke lightly glared at Haruki, out of habit.

Haruki sighed and gave up, sinking back into her chair. Once again defeated in her attempt to not bother Isuke with her own issues.

A small nurse in surgical scrubs took large strides to where both Isuke and Haruki sat.

"Sagae-san?" She questionably looked between both the girls, unsure of whom she was supposed to look for.

Haruki diligently stood up. "Yes?"

"The operation was a complete success. Your mother has been taken back to her room. Everything should be fine now." She smiled.

Isuke raised a brow, and took out her phone, glancing at the time.

The operation was supposed to last seven hours. From what she calculated, it had only been four from the time Haruki gave the doctor her consent to follow through and now.

Haruki smiled in relief, her features finally relaxing. She felt as if a huge load had been removed, making her lighter in her feet.

"She won't wake up for a while, but you may go see her."

Haruki's smile widened.

"Yes. Please." She looked at Isuke, who responded by slightly shaking her head. Isuke felt more relieved at the fact that Haruki looked better herself.

"Isuke's a bit hungry." Isuke told Haruki, watching the nurse walk away and disappear through the double-doors which lead to another area. "I'm going to get something to eat. You go ahead."

Plus Isuke felt as if she would overstep her boundaries if she tagged along now. Haruki needed to be alone with her mother right now.

Both of them agreed on meeting back in the room after Isuke had finished. With this, Haruki and Isuke went their separate ways.

Haruki took each one of her steps into careful consideration as she walked to her mothers' room. She didn't know what to expect. It had been quite the while since she had last stopped by on a casual visit. Not because she didn't care, but because she had begun to regard her studies in a serious way.

She did frequently call. Four times a day, to be exact.

Haruki worried about her mothers' appearance and health.

Being sick most of the time meant losing your appetite, which would lead her mom to eat less, provoking excessive amounts of weight loss. And the sight of her skeletal looking mother shook Haruki up way too much. It made her seem weaker than she already was.

Finally reaching the room, Haruki quietly opened the door, revealing a dimly-lit area.

She carefully walked to where her mother rested and couldn't help but release the hard breath she had been holding in.

Thankfully her mother looked like herself. Which meant that she's had a good, balanced diet up until now.

Haruki smiled, her eyes soft and relieved.

At least she look peaceful and relaxed.

Now all Haruki had to do was wait who knows how many more hours until her mom would wake up again. Then everything will be fine. It always was.

Haruki lovingly smiled down on the peaceful appearance her mother had, and carefully repositioned one of the many strands of hair, which age and stress had thinned. Slowly brushing a gentle hand along the visible yet subtle worry-marks which time had branded her mothers' face with.

She felt so fragile under Haruki's touch.

Haruki sighed and closed her eyes, slumping herself on a nearby chair. She propped her head on her hands and her elbows rested on her knees.

That was it.

The worst was over.

And her mother would live another day to smile with her family. And maybe one day, she could once again join them for the rare activitythat was a complete family dinner.

Haruki lifted her head and looked at the small clock, which un-elegantly hung on the wall. It made a subtle but annoying enough _tick_ noise.

She couldn't quite see the time, because her eyes were rather moist, leaving her vision murky. But she could tell it was late, because she felt extremely exhausted, and drained. And the soft orangey-yellow colors of the sunset where a dead giveaway.

Putting her head back in her hands, Haruki closed her eyes.

She was tired, but she decided that she wouldn't sleep until all of this was over.

Not until she heard her mothers' voice reassure her that everything was going to be okay; but her eyes were just so heavy.

Haruki began to take, slow, deep calming breaths…

'_It's going to be ok.'_

Haruki opened her eyes. She had fallen asleep.

Looking at the window she realized that the sun had completely set.

The quiet beeping of the machines that were hooked up to her mothers' frail body echoed around the room, bringing a Haruki back to her sense.

Two soft knocks and the ruffling of the door-knob interrupted the loud noise the machines made. Opening the door, Isuke quietly entered the room, locating Haruki.

She wordlessly walked to where her companion sat. Wishing that there was something she could finally say to make things less hard on her. But judging from the way the situation progressed, and Haruki's relieved look, Isuke presumed that everything really was okay now.

Not entirely _ok_, because Haruki's mom would continue to be hospitalized. But according to the doctor, the risk of further complication was extremely low.

After making eye contact, Haruki weakly smiled and got up, more out of curtesy to Isuke, who had just returned.

Another light knock on the door made both heads turn to face the door.

The same nurse that had earlier informed Haruki about the surgeries success walked in, still wearing her scrubs. Both Haruki and Isuke attentively straightened themselves in synchronization, awaiting whatever information was to come.

The nurse briefly smiled, looking back and forth between the two girls, her eyes finally landing on Haruki.

"Sagae-san." The nurse politely bowed. "We have some paperwork you need to fill out, and the doctor would like to discuss further treatment methods with you."

"Oh."

Haruki stuttered in her steps. She quickly looked at Isuke, who waved a dismissive hand, informing her that it was okay to go.

"Alright." Haruki answered, finally turning her attention to the small nurse.

The nurse backed away and extended a hand, gesturing for the door.

"Right this way."

Isuke couldn't help but laugh at herself after both Haruki and the nurse had exited the room. This whole thing has had her own emotions on the edge as well, for some reason.

"And who might you be?"

Isuke's eyes widened and she turned around. Her eyes meeting with gentle, and slightly hazed, brown ones.

Haruki's mother smiled, tender and warm, at how startled Isuke looked.

"No need to afraid, honey. You look like you've just seen a ghost." Contradicting her original prognosis, the supposedly ill patient effortlessly sat up in her bed. "Come, sit."

Isuke still felt dumbfounded, and instinctively sat down on the spot Haruki's mom had been quietly patting, in a form of invitation.

"I should call the nurse?" Isuke quietly stated, more to herself. Unsure of what the protocol for a patient who had just woken up from a surgery called for.

Now her head was really spinning.

"Please, don't." The older woman smiled, keeping Isuke in place by lightly taking hold of her wrist. Gaining a disturbed look from the pink haired girl, at the touch.

Isuke, being Isuke, did not acknowledge any authority other than that of her own, and her parents. But right now, looking at the withering woman before her, she couldn't help but feel a significant amount of respect for her.

"Um, I don't - you should." Isuke stuttered. Right now, she felt uncomfortable to the degree of wanting to disappear. "I should get Haruki." She finally managed.

Isuke bit back her frustration at the realization that the strong willed character she worked so hard to build, was now crumbling before her. And to no surprise; it was to Haruki's mother.

She was going to start calling it the _Sagae effect_.

"Oh, don't do that." Haruki's mom teased waving a hand. "That girl does nothing but worry. Let the doctor reassure her that I'll be fine."

Isuke remembered the nurses' words a while back.

"Wait, you were awake?"

Haruki's mom released Isuke's hand, and simply nodded.

"I wanted some time to my thoughts before the doctors began to suffocate me with ridiculous questions." She laughed, closing her eyes in amusement.

Isuke didn't know whether she should feel bad about the fact that this woman had been in such a poor state of health for so long, that she could lightly joke about her own condition.

"So tell me darling, what may I help you with? You're a new face." Haruki's mother slightly frowned in thought. "At least I don't think I can remember seeing you before."

Haruki had once mentioned that her mom would sometimes have small episodes of amnesia.

And seeing how not recognizing Isuke painted her features with worry, Isuke wondered if it was because she thought she had just forgotten her.

That's when the realization, of how Haruki must have felt, when one day her mother had just forgotten her; even if it had been for just a brief moment, dawned on Isuke.

It was painful.

At least if her Mama or Papa ever forgot about Isuke, she wouldn't know what to do with herself.

"No." Isuke felt herself smile, in both tender-pity and formality. "This is the first time we've met...um..Sagae-san."

"Oh." Haruki's mother began to laugh at herself. "Well it's a pleasure to meet you. Are you one of Haruki's friends? I deeply apologize for my daughter troubling you like this."

Isuke quietly laughed herself.

This woman was truly a kind one.

She had just met her for the first time and she already felt beyond comfortable with her. She had the same calming aura Haruki usually carried around.

"No need to apologize. I was the one who decided to accompany her." Isuke embarrassingly half bowed in greeting. She was clearly not used to these polite formalities. And her usual reproaching character was forcefully kept in check.

"I'm Inukai Isuke."

The older woman's eyes came to life at Isuke's words, and her face lit up.

"Oh! _Isuke-sama_?! Haruki's roommate, am I correct?" She brought her hands together and smiled the brightest, sweetest and warmest smile Isuke had ever seen a person do. A dying one, anyway.

Kind of like the same look a child would get after you finally agree on buying them candy.

Isuke's felt her mouth open slightly in both shock and confusion.

"I'm sorry for just assuming, it's just that _Isuke_ is such a unique name, so I just thought." Haruki's mother apologetically giggled and smiled.

"Y-yeah." Isuke stuttered, still shocked, but now, she felt embarrassed. Embarrassed that Haruki would actually tell her mother that she had been forced to call somebody '–sama'.

Haruki's mother brought her hands forward and clasped Isuke's, looking directly at her.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you. Haruki has told me SO much. That girl could go on and on about you."

Isuke froze.

She really wished she was dead now. What in the world was really going on here?

"The pleasure is mine." Isuke mechanically managed. She continued to stare, unsure on whether it was okay for her to talk or even respond at all.

How much had Haruki told her mother?

Sighing, Haruki's mother dropped Isuke's hand and quietly repositioned herself.

"Thank you for bringing my daughter to life."

Isuke flashed a questioning and confused look. Looking away, she quickly straightened herself and ran a hand through her hair, smoothing out her curls. Her eyes fidgeted around every corner of the room. Only daring to glance at the woman before her, from the corner of her eyes.

Laughing in response, Haruki's mother turned to face the window, staring at the nights' sky.

"When she had first entered that fancy academy, I could sense something was different about her tone whenever we talked on the phone." Haruki's mom looked thoughtful, trying to look for words. "She sounded...more upbeat than she used to, if I were to put a name on it." She laughed. "But after she left, whatever trace of joy that had once been there was gone."

Sighing, Haruki's mother shrugged and looked at Isuke.

"And to think I had thought she had finally decided to act her age and enjoy herself."

Looking away, she furrowed her brows.

"I never did get to know why she had sounded so different when she had stayed in Myōjō."

Once again directing her attention to Isuke, Haruki's mother smiled, expressing a certain amount of a mothers' joy and gratitude through her eyes.

"But after she went back again, her mood did a complete one-eighty and I saw in her something I thought I'd never get to see again."

Her eyes softened.

"Genuine happiness."

Isuke continued to be quiet, slightly admiring how Haruki's mother could manage to think about others, rather than herself at a time like this. Maybe that's what being a parent meant. Maybe that's just how things worked in their household.

And right now, Isuke felt as if she was getting an inside look into Haruki and the reason behind her actions.

"She would always pretend that everything was fine and plaster that fake smile around me, but I know better than that of course."

Haruki's mom joyfully laughed, her eyes, as if it were possible, growing brighter.

"But this time around, her smiles were real, and she looked like she was finally enjoying herself. That's when she began to cautiously mention you with each visit. Oh how she would light up!"

Isuke began to feel herself grow warm in bigger embarrassment than she had originally felt.

"That's when I concluded that you must be the reason why." Haruki's mom gave Isuke a playfully accusing look. "But that was just me narrowing it down."

Isuke intently listened, leaning in to the insightful words the older woman shared. Her hair had fallen to the side, revealing part of her smooth neck, and exposing the small _blemish_.

Haruki's mothers' eyes slightly widened for a split seconded, and a childish giggle escaped her lips. Her body shook in amusement.

"She can be...quite tactless sometimes." She managed between her chuckles.

Extending a hand forward, she cupped Isuke's neck, covering the mark with her gentle hand.

"So I apologize on her behalf." She added, knowingly smiling.

Isuke visibly blushed. Pulling back, she cupped her own neck resealing a small unintentional gasp.

But then the womans' words began to sink in. To Isuke, Haruki had always been this, loud, carefree, joyful, annoying...loving, Pocky-eater. She had not known that her struggles were deeper rotted than that.

And thinking back to how Haruki's mother had mentioned the visible change in her daughter, Isuke realized that Haruki had not been the only one to change. Meeting Haruki has made Isuke, in a sense, mature.

Haruki taught Isuke what it truly was to care for somebody other than herself.

She taught her what genuine desire was, and that wanting to stand next to someone else did not make you weak, but stronger. That seeing somebody else feel vulnerable or lost, could in fact make you feel vulnerable and lost as well.

Haruki had done much more for Isuke than what she already acknowledged.

Smiling a familiar a mischievous smile, Haruki's mom placed a cold had on Isuke's bare stomach. Causing the other girl to shiver.

"It's not my place to say, but you should really wear a little more. It's rather cold in here." She joked.

Isuke's tense body relaxed and she could no longer hold back a small laugh.

Like mother like daughter.

Though Isuke still couldn't understand how this person could arouse both laughter and comfort within her so easily.

The room door slowly opened once more, and a downcast looking Haruki walked into the room, her features lighting up at the sight of her mother sitting up, fine and awake.

"Mom." Haruki excitedly breathed, practically running to her side.

"Are you ok? Does anything hurt? Do you feel lightheaded? Are you hungry? Do you-"

"And this is why I had told you not to call her earlier." Haruki's mother said, directing her words at Isuke while she pointed at Haruki.

"I'm fine, Haruki. Everything is fine. I was just having a pleasant talk with your wonderful friend here."

Haruki looked down at Isuke, who simply crossed her legs and lifted a hand in greeting, wearing her casual face.

"Oh." Haruki a little dumbstruck at the thought of both Isuke and her mother interacting. "I guess, I'll..get the doctor?"

"Ok, dear. You go do that."

"Ok." Haruki repeated to herself, still not comprehending the situation before her. "Right."

But her mother was okay, and that's all that mattered.

To Haruki, both Isuke and her mother looked as if they were old friends, who were catching up, right until she had walked in.

Haruki quietly turned around and went for the door, finally feeling relief with the knowledge that her mother was going to be alright. Only to stop at the door, asking her mother if she truly was alright, and if she needed anything once more.

After she repeated that she was fine, Haruki left for the nurses.

Though the thought of Inukai Isuke, someone who wouldn't be able to manage a polite greeting even if her life depended on it, and her mother, seemed strangely odd, and amusing in Haruki's head.

Haruki let out a low chuckle as she envisioned the scene.

"Could I bother you by asking for a spare blanket? I don't know about you, but I tend to feel a cold after being cut open."

You had to admire this woman's sense of humor. At least Isuke did. She made the concept of childishly-mature possible.

"Sure."

Isuke got up, and walked to the door. Turning around when she heard Haruki's mother beginning to loudly cough.

"I-It's fine." The mother waved a dismissive hand. "Just chocked on a little air there." She tenderly added, trying to erase the worried look Isuke didn't even know she was wearing.

Unconvinced, Isuke left the room in search for a blanket. Hoping that nobody she knew would ever hear word of this. Isuke did not like to take orders or do favors, but she always had, just like everybody else what we call, exceptions.

Haruki had been such a frequent visitor, that she eventually became a familiar face around the place. And knowing Haruki's nature, she had probably befriended everybody.

But Isuke was new around.

Meaning that nobody offered her any assistance once she left the room, like they would have probably done with Haruki. And Isuke didn't do befriending, so finding somebody to assist her seemed much more like complicated task now.

And most of the male nurses were too intimidated by her looks to even think about approaching her.

"Hurry! Room 407! Somebody call the doctor!" A frantic voice began to yell.

Isuke turned around, only to see frantic doctors, nurses and interns running in direction from where she had just came.

Room 407?

Wasn't that...

'_Haruki..' _

The events that followed were a train-wreck of emotions.

Isuke was now in the curtained cubical beside that of Haruki's mother, examining the polystyrene tiled ceiling. There was nothing else to look at.

She could hear the stifled sobs of Fuyuka, who tried very dearly to stay strong.

This actually made Isuke feel glad for the curtains that divided them.

Covering her face with a hand, Isuke laid-down, sinking into her chair, noticing that it was somewhat lumpy with padding and sheets that tried to mask the thick plastic covering the cushion.

After Haruki had gone out to get the nurse, to inform her that her mother had woken up, Isuke had also left the room.

And according to the doctor, Haruki's moms' heart simply stopped beating, due to over-strain, probably. Her body must have been put under a significant amount of stress during the surgery.

Isuke felt outraged.

How could she not notice that Haruki's mother had been in such a crucial state? They had been talking just fine no less than a few minutes ago.

Not to mention that Haruki had zero to no time to actually be with her mother after she had woken up.

Isuke took a deep breath and realized that Haruki had not shed a tear.

She did not respond to the doctors words.

She had just stood there, with the blankest expression Isuke had ever seen in her life.

Haruki's eyes had looked hollow and empty. Isuke didn't even think such bright and emotion filled eyes could ever look so… Sad.

The doctor then deliberately called Haruki's sibling, informing them about the situation. Haruki was simply asked to sign some paper work.

Haruki pulled the curtain open, taking Isuke out of her own thoughts, revealing her massive amount family members on the other side.

The neighboring bed was empty, with fresh sterile white sheets accompanied with pale blue blanket.

"Mommy! No! Why?" Isuke saw a small boy crying in Fuyuka's arms.

"Haruki-nee, what's going on?" A younger child asked, tugging on Haruki's skirt.

"Nee-chan! I'm hungry!" Another an older one selfishly complained.

"Haruki..." Isuke stood up, not sure about what she was supposed to say or do. She even felt a little out of place and useless.

"Fuyuka, you guys have dinner?" Haruki asked, directing her attention to the second oldest. Her voice was calm and held a new taste of dry authority.

The girl who Isuke presumed to be Fuyuka simply shook her head in response.

Haruki wordlessly took out a few stray bills from her pocket and handed them to her sister.

"You guys go get some fresh air and something to eat." Haruki spoke, directing her attention to all of her siblings, managing a calming smile. The room was actually pretty cramped. "I have to go finish some formalities and pick up the rest of moms things."

She handed Fuyuka the money and escorted all of her mourning and confused siblings out the door.

Fuyuka stopped just at the frame and looked at Haruki.

"Will you be ok?" She asked, clearly concerned.

Haruki smiled, and gave a weak nod, ruffling her sisters' hair.

"Keep an eye on them, from the looks of things, Aki is the only one who has been able to completely understand. I'll join you as soon as I can."

Fuyuka nodded and looked at Isuke, giving her a small bow-of-a-nod and was out the door.

"Haruki..." Isuke tried again soon after the redhead completely shut the door.

Haruki looked around the room.

It was cramped, even after her family left.

Dominated by two beds and a bedside table. The room was decorated in restful tones and colors, but come off akin to a decorators choices for a funeral home. The room looked like it was desperately trying to look like someone's bedroom, but lacking personality.

Especially now, that Haruki was just about done picking up the things her now late mother had left about.

Everything felt surreal to Haruki.

Isuke just stood there. Not knowing what to do, she looked down at the cold, institutional tile floor of the room.

"The doctors.." Haruki began. "Don't know what happed."

She released a small pained laugh which twisted knots inside Isuke's chest.

"One moment she was fine, and the next..." Haruki suppressed a sob, shaking in response.

Quickly rubbing a hand over her face she turned around and walked to the window at the end of the room. Shaking, she gave her back to Isuke a wiped her face again.

"They can't pinpoint the exact cause of death... Her heart.. Just stopped working."

Isuke looked down and rubbed her arm, not wanting to look at the painful sight in front of her.

Haruki extended her hands and reclined herself against the window sill for support, tightly clutching it.

That's when Isuke saw it.

If she had not looked at the exact moment she did, she would have missed it.

A small, globular, thin drop of liquid fell from the extremes of Haruki's face to the floor. Haruki shook again, trying to stay strong and firm, muffling her sobs.

"..Haruki.."

Isuke made a face, realizing that she has contributed nothing useful other than saying her name about three times.

She sighed and cautiously, walked forward.

Haruki felt two gentle hands enclose her waist and pull her close. Isuke's attempt of a supporting hug was what some may call, awkward.

Isuke leaned in and rested her head just between Haruki's shaking shoulders and warm neck.

"It's okay to cry." Isuke finally whispered.

Shaking her head, Haruki stifled a sad laugh.

"I can't.. I-I.. I have to be strong for all of us now..." Releasing a hard breath, which she hadn't even realized she had been holding, Haruki somehow managed to turn the exhalation into a weak scoff. "I'm the oldest, therefore, I'm now responsible for my family."

Isuke was looking at her intently, eyes soft and concerned.

Haruki's hand very gently covered Isuke's, and Isuke's attempting words, died, forgotten.

Ignoring the pang in her chest that Haruki's tone brought about, Isuke glowered.

"But you've always been responsible for your family. You've always been taking care of them..."

Isuke pulled Haruki into her chest. It felt familiar, but not right. Haruki was stiff as a board, doing her best to stay focused and sane.

"You've always been by yourself, taking care of them.." Isuke's voice got soft and low. "Now-" She struggled to say the words but easily found them. "Let me take care of you."

Waiting apprehensively for Haruki to respond in some way, Isuke's mind wondered to the darker part of her brain that wondered when she became like this. She reluctantly scolded herself.

With a weak, sheepish laugh, Haruki shook her head, and her vision began to water, and blur.

Turning around and burying her face in Isuke's chest, Haruki returned the hug, tightly. It was strong, painful, and needy, but Isuke didn't mind.

Closing her eyes, for that moment, Haruki blocked out everything and everyone in the world except Isuke, and allowed it.

Haruki didn't remember the last time she had cried like that.

Both of them stayed silent in the room for about a good hour.

Haruki had now more or less finished cleaning up and was sitting in the uncomfortable hospital mattress. Every now and again, she would glance at the pillow where her moms' head had once rested. She hoped that if this was a nightmare, she would soon wake up.

Isuke quietly sat in the chair that was meant for guests. Carefully watching over.

"Um, excuse me, Haruki?" A soft and quiet voice interrupted.

Both Isuke and Haruki looked in the direction of the door, and saw Fuyuka. She had not dared to enter the room. She hid behind the half-open door of the room. Only exposing her head and the hand which gripped the door itself.

She looked cautious.

"I had knocked…" Her voice trailed off. Fuyuka decided to take this chance to completely enter the room, still looking a bit uncomfortable. She didn't dare to even look at Haruki, causing her to solely focus on the depressing hospital floor.

Because she knew that if she were to look at her sister, she would no longer be able to hold it in, and would probably break down right there and then. This is because, like Haruki, Fuyuka also felt a sense of responsibility towards her family which would not allow her to.

Also, Fuyuka wanted to stay strong. Not for herself, but for Harurki. Because she didn't want to add any weight to the burden her sister constantly carried around with her. Especially not now.

But this didn't mean that her voice wouldn't break whenever she tried to speak or that her face didn't look puffy due to all the crying she had done.

Isuke carefully inspected the brown haired girl before her. She really looked nothing like Haruki. Then again, none of her siblings showed any resemblance to her.

"I'm going to go get something to drink." Isuke got up from where she sat and smoothed out her skirt. She glided, economical and quiet with her movements, her way out of the room were Haruki's mom had once been.

What Haruki needed right now was not Isuke. At this point there was nothing Isuke could really do for Haruki. What she needed now was mutual understanding, which could only be obtained with a family member who was also experiencing the same degree of pain and loss.

Isuke carefully closed the door behind her.

'_Maybe I should get her some coffee or something.'_ Perhaps the scalding, soothing, bitter-liquid could give Haruki the sustenance she so desperately craved.

But it was strange; All too strange.

Haruki's late mother had been in pretty bad shape, but a person's heart shouldn't simply stop beating just like that, without a direct cause. Especially if you consider the intensive care she was under. It just didn't make sense.

"Fuyuka, no need to shy out on me now." Haruki lightly teased, trying her best to manage a smile. She quietly patted the spot next to her on the hospital bed, arousing the crumpling noise of the ridged bed sheets. "Come, sit with me."

Fuyuka quietly and obediently followed orders, except that she sat a little bit farther away from Haruki than expected. This cause a small, sharp pain inside Haruki's chest.

The brunette was quiet and fiddled with her own fingers, nervous and sad.

Even though the girl felt a horrible pang of guilt whenever she acknowledged it, Fuyuka did not entirely see their mother as well…her mother.

Yes, she loved her mother dearly, and saw her as a valued family member. But the type of love she felt was not that of a daughter towards a mother. According to her own self-evaluation, it was more of a niece towards an aunt type of love. Even if she didn't know whether she had any.

Soon after she had been born, their mother had always been in the constant transition of either being in the hospital, or bedridden at home. So whenever Fuyuka tried to picture that maternal figure she deeply yearned for, she would only see quick flashes of Haruki.

From the times Haruki helped her study for those really hard math tests, or the times Haruki would nurse her back to health whenever she got sick. Or the times she would wake up crying at night due to a horrible nightmare, and Haruki would always be there to reassure her that everything was going to be okay, and would hold her hand until she fell back asleep.

Fuyuka had always looked up to Haruki, and would always stare in awe as her older sister was always quick to respond to new problems.

Like the time their fridge no longer had food, and Fuyuka had woken up crying from both anger and hunger in the middle of the night.

Haruki had promised she would make things better, and set out on a search for sustenance. Only to return home the next morning covered in dirt and God knows what else, carrying a simple loaf of bread and two bananas. She had let her starving sister eat it all, and waited until Fuyuka was back in bed the next night to go look for more.

Chancing a glance at Haruki, Fuyuka's chest tightened.

In all honesty, Haruki was a painful sight to watch right now. Her features were the same, but there was something that particularly stood out in her person. Such as the way her shoulders were unknowingly slumped forward and her eyes were firmly fixed on the wall ahead; the fatigued look in her eyes, which held something unreadable to them.

The sight displayed how much pain she held in, be it sadness or frustration.

Unlike Haruki, Fuyuka had never gotten to see the healthier version of their mom. To the girl, she had always been this frail and unreliable person. Not that she could help it.

In, fact, it was common knowledge that their mother was not supposed to have any more kids after Fuyuka had been born. Heck, even Fuyuka wasn't supposed to be here. These things just happen.

Looking at it from a more realistic point of view. Fuyuka did grieve her mother, because she loved her. But she grieved more for her sister, who she acknowledged to be the person who struggled and sacrificed everything to raise her, and the rest of her siblings.

There truly was more to Haruki than that carefree persona she had developed over time as a defense mechanism. This girl was always wallowing up in her own thoughts and worries about what she had to do next. About how she could provide more for those who depended on her to live.

"Fuyuka."

Snapping out of her own thoughts, Fuyuka looked directly at Haruki.

Haruki was looking back at her. Giving her that same loving, and tender look she would give Fuyuka whenever she would come home, sad or frustrated, because she either had a bad grade on a test, or because she had been bullied due to her family's circumstances.

Extending a welcoming hand in the other girls' direction, Haruki gently pated her own lap, causing a small and involuntary giggle to escape her sisters' tense lips.

"I'm a little too old to be sitting on your lap."

This reaction cause Haruki to playfully pout. No matter how hard she tried to disguise how she really felt, her downcast eyes were a dead giveaway on how she was barely holding herself up.

Fuyuka sighed and reluctantly maneuvered her way into Haruki's warm arms. Gently sitting between her legs, just like they would do when they were kids.

Giving up on trying to be reluctant, Fuyuka snuggled herself closer to Haruki, trying to figure out what she could do to make everything okay once again.

Haruki closed her eyes and rested her chin un-top of Fuyuka's head, finally feeling herself relax in her sisters' familiar scent.

"You know I'm not a child anymore. You don't have to comfort me like this."

"Hmm." Haruki tiredly hummed in response.

Fuyuka was right. She wasn't the one that needed comfort the most right now. Haruki did this for herself. Because feeling her sister in the safety of her arms made her feel better anda little less incompetent.

A small smile crept in the corners of Haruki's lips and she hugged the girl closer.

"Old habits die hard, I guess." Haruki knitted her brows in attentive worry, her features twisting a little. "And you're still a child, Fuyuka. So please...act like one. Enjoy these precious years life is giving you."

Haruki felt Fuyuka begin to shake in her arms.

"I don't- I don't want to but...can-" Fuyuka's voice broke. "Can I be scared?"

Still resting her chin on her sisters' head, Haruki slowly nodded.

"What are you going to do now?" Fuyuka whispered. Subtle sobs began escaping, and her body shook a little harder.

Haruki clutched her sister tighter.

"I don't know."

"What's going to happen?" Fuyuka's voice broke in a high-pitch, and a few rebellious tears decided to seize this opportunity and escape. She was grateful that in the position they were in, Haruki could not see her expression.

"I don't know."

"Whats going to happen to us?"

Fuyuka was now feeling herself completely slip from the calm attitude she had originally decided to confront the situation in.

Haruki shut her eyes tighter and gave her sister a comforting squeeze.

"I'm not sure..." Haruki answered in a low, shaky whisper. Feeling panic begin to set in once she felt her voice break.

There was a mutual silence between the sisters, and Fuyuka could no longer help it. She began to uncontrollably cry from fear of the unknown.

Now that there was no actual parental figure involved in their lives, it was time to face the thing one thing Haruki had been fearing ever since she had been informed that her mother did not have much time to live a while back.

Fuyuka began to rummage through her pocket, removing a crumpled envelope.

She took a deep breath.

"This is for you.. It was delivered earlier to me."

Haruki pulled back a bit to get a better look at whatever Fuyuka was trying to show her.

Wide golden eyes inspected the envelope before her. Carefully and almost methodically, she removed the envelope from her sisters' hand and carefully scanned it to better understand what it as, even if she already knew.

Part of her really wanted it to just be another one of those annoying bills she barely had the savings to pay with.

She set her jaw hard, and swallowed her grief once she saw the bright, blue government seal on the upper corner of the envelope.

It was a custody order.

Quickly opening it, Haruki frowned at the paper.

Beginning to feel herself grow a lightheaded as she struggled to ignore the nausea that cause her stomach to flip in every direction.

But it had barely been twenty-four hours since their mother passed away. The only possible way to receive a custody order would be if social services considered the lives of her siblings to be in danger due to their unstable lifestyle, or if someone filed one.

Haruki's frown deepened and her hands began to shake.

Who in the right mind would file it? Haruki knew of no other relatives from her mothers' side.

Unless-

Haruki felt her sister move, and stand up.

Sternly looking at her sister, Fuyuka watched as worry and panic began to violently color her features.

Fuyuka's eyes did the best job they could to blink back the persistent tears that just wouldn't stop coming. And taking a deep shaky breath, Fuyuka clenched her fists and felt a surge of irritation, which finally allowed her to voice out one of her biggest insecurities.

"Haruki." Her voice was low, but stern. She felt herself beginning to bite her lip out of anxiety. Her sobs, finally subsiding. "Do you resent us?"

"What?"Haruki breathed out, genuinely shocked at her sisters words.

Bitting harder, Fuyuka looked down at her feet in shame.

"If…If none of us had ever been born. If mom had never met my dad..."

The way Fuyuka had referred to Haruki's step-father, as simply her dad and not both their father, stung. And for the first time in her life, making her feel alienated from the rest of her brothers and sisters.

"You wouldn't be going through all of this." Fuyuka began to tremble and her voice once again began to deceive her. "You would have been able to live a normal life."

The brunette hugged her body as she spoke, feeling herself grow smaller and weaker with each passing second.

Fuyuka swallowed, trying to push down the tears that edged up to her eyes.

Over whelmed with a sentimental feeling of affection for Fuyuka, Haruki stood up. Causing the cheap hospital bed she had been sitting in to be pushed back.

Haruki tentatively brought her hands forward, in an attempt to go and hug her sister. Shock was still visible in her countenance. And she was halted mid-motion by a throaty laugh that emanated from the other girl.

"Don't say that." Haruki pleaded, her mouth twisting in pain. Her voice came out in a rasp she failed to conceal.

Fuyuka, unable to bear her guilt and frustration, finally lashed out at Haruki, for the first time.

"But it's the truth and you know it!" Fuyuka forcefully pushed Haruki away. Causing the other girl to take a few steps back. The back of her legs bumped the unstable hospital bed.

Under normal circumstances, Fuyuka would not be able to do this, because Haruki was clearly superior in both size and strength. But Hauki had not recovered from the initial shock of her beloved sisters' words; she couldn't stand her ground against Fuyuka's push, which caused her to weakly drift backwards.

"Don't deny it!" Fuyuka pressed on, crying, and bringing a hand up to her chest as if that would sooth the pain she felt from both her words and actions. "Look at me and tell me that you've never felt angry at us. Look at me and tell me that there has never been a moment in your life where you haven't wondered how easy it would have been. How easy it would have been if you had stayed an only child!"

Haruki's mouth opened, and she had intended to say something, anything. But no words came out. She felt heavy. Her sisters' words were literally daggers to her chest.

Was this how her family felt?

Still, to Haruki, there seemed to be something strangely fitting and almost inevitable, about Fuyuka's breakdown. The emotional outpouring seemed to reveal everything that was occurring in her own heart. It seemed reflective of the taut, delicate wires of stress which were strung up inside her sisters' chest.

Swallowing hard and resolved, Haruki un-hesitantly moved forward and brought her reluctant sister into a tight hug.

Closing her eyes, Haruki did her best to not grant freedom to the tears that wanted out.

"You guy have been nothing but a blessing to me." Haruki finally whispered. Tightening her hold as Fuyuka tried to fight against it.

"Liar!"

"You guys are the reason I was able to maintain my sanity all these years. Because of you guys, I was able to genuinely love again. So please, don't say things like that."

Haruki released a low sigh, and began to rub slow comforting circles on his sisters' back, in an attempt to soothe her.

"You know, right now I feel like crawling into a hole and staying there." Haruki chuckled in sympathetic humor. "But you guys are my priority. You guys will get the education I didn't have; you will get to make friends, go out, and have fun...be free. And I will make sure of that. I want to give you the things that I never had, because that's how grateful I am. That's how much I love you all."

A teary eyes Fuyuka pulled back, getting a better look at Haruki.

Haruki's expression was calm, and reassuring. Haruki brought a hand up and gently wiped away the fresh tears that slid down Fuyuka's cheekbone.

"Let me handle things. Your job right now is to focus on your studies and your future." Haruki looked at the crumpled enveloped from the corner of her eye. She had let it fall on the ground earlier. "I won't let anything happen. I promise…"

Isuke aimlessly wondered around the plain hospital halls, wondering if it was okay to finally go back to the room.

Not exactly knowing where she was going or what she was normally supposed to do under these circumstances, she had distracted herself by stalking down a vending machine and avoiding kids.

She had accidentally wondered into the children's ward earlier and was practically attacked by kids who either wanted to touch her "frilly looking hair" or just stare at the tall beauty.

It sure was a refreshing sight compared to the usual grumpy looking nurses who were constantly rushing in and out of the area.

Finally escaping their miniature wrath and grumpy hands, Isuke was now a little lost.

Everything looked so depressingly similar in the huge hospital that her sense of direction felt trifled with.

Isuke tried to figure out her location by reading the name plates and room numbers which plainly hang next to each room door.

Remembering her original location earlier, she looked at another number plate.

Room 704.

She was quite far from where Haruki was.

Isuke didn't want to ask for directions, but considering that this place was practically a bleach colored maddening maze, she was left with no other choice.

Trying to locate any employee, be it nurse, doctor, or janitor, Isuke failed to notice the tall slender figure up ahead.

Unknowing bumping into what felt like the hard back of a male, Isuke was pushed backwards and the force cause her to fall on the floor in a simple _thud_.

"My sincerest apologies." The kind masculine voice offered, extending a long, gloved hand forward to help Isuke back to her feet.

"Watch we're you're going." Isuke complained, glaring, even if she had been the one at fault here.

"Isuke?"

Recognizing the voice, Isuke blinked against the blinding ceiling lights, trying to finally get a better look at the person in front of her.

Her heart began to pound harder, and she tried to swallow down the lump she now felt in her throat.

"Mama?"

**Author Note: Sorry that I didn't post it on Saturday. Other than being sick I was basically working on an art project (majoring in art). **

**I feel the need apologize. Someone had offered to proof read the story and would always point out small mistakes, both in grammar and syntax. I'd like to clarify that English is not my first nor second language. It's just something I "picked up". So I deeply bow and thank you for your patience with me.**

**I'm trying to make these chapters long, so I guess if I miraculously finish my weeks work on time, I'll have the chapter set for Saturday. **

**Hope you guys have an excellent week and succeed in whatever you're trying to accomplish! **

**Side-Note: Shit did not get real in this chapter because of the edit. But next chapter for sure.**

**Side-Note-To-My-Side-Note: GUEST-SAN (don't know who you are), THIS ONE IS FOR YOU. I sincerely did not plan to update this week because of work, but your review this morning hit me hard on the feels. *bows so hard I break a hole on the ground*. Thank you for being patient, all of you guys.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"Mama?"

Isuke, still a bit shaken and perplexed by the sudden and unexpected encounter, accepted her Mama's assisting hand, and got back on her feet.

"Isuke, you could have warned me if you were going to be late." Eisuke sighed, reaching for the breast pocket inside his suit. He removed a slim black phone. "Well, what's done is done, and everything has been perfectly executed thus far."

Still disoriented by the unexpected (but always welcomed) presence of her Mama, Isuke was just about ready to bombardier him with all of her burning questions.

But in that event, a familiar face came into view.

The doctor who had been in charge of the surgery that should have saved the life of Haruki's mother, walked in their direction at a hasty pace. He looked tired, and fatigue was clearly visible in both his steps and features.

Finally coming close and within earshot, the doctor began to scan the area around him with fidgeting with and uneasy eyes.

"Everything proceeded as you ordered." The doctor informed, his words were directed at Eisuke. He removed a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped the incisive trickling sweat off his forehead. "Now please, will my family be ok? You promised-"

Eisuke raise a tentative finger and began texting someone. The cool expression he wore did not match his fast and gliding fingers untop the keyboard.

Finishing, he closed the phone and neatly tucked it back into his pocket.

"Your family is fine, everything has been taken care off." Eisuke leaned closer to the doctor. "And like we negotiated." He removed a black envelope from his suit and discreetly offered it to the doctor.

The current exchange itself was suspicious enough, but Eisuke was more than careful in his movements, and he had made sure that nobody could clearly see what he was doing.

To any bystander, this just looked like a common scene, where a worried family member was probably asking the stressed doctor about the condition of a loved one.

Isuke looked at the black envelope and studied the doctors' reaction.

"Mama, what going on?"

The doctor flinched back, looking both angry and anxious.

"Keep your dammed money! I only did what I did for my family. You better stay away from them!" The older gentleman un-impressionably warned.

Eisuke nodded, un-phased.

"As promised."

Isuke began putting the pieces together in her head. Trying to figure out why her Mama was here, and what kind of connection or relationship he currently had with the balding man.

Then, something clicked in her head.

An unpleasant realization.

Haruki's mother needing surgery out of the blue.

How said surgery only lasted about a fraction of what it was originally supposed to last.

How reluctant and vague the doctor had been when he was asked to explain the details of the mothers' condition.

How tense that same doctor looked right now...

Isuke felt every fiber in her body grow cold.

The doctor continued to wipe his forehead in the same repetitive motion. His anxiety growing more obvious by the second.

"Now leave me alone, I beg you. I don't want anything to do with people like you. And make sure nobody hears of this. If word gets out my reputation-"

"Everything will be fine, doctor. No one will know." Eisuke calmly reassured.

The doctor wiped more sweat away and began to fidget, he started breathing rather heavily.

Eisuke's phone loudly vibrated, interrupting. It was just loud enough for both Isuke and the doctor to hear.

"Excuse me a second."

Eisuke distanced himself from where they stood, trying for some privacy.

The doctor continued to fidget, he looked as if he was about to throw up. This caused Isuke to take a precautious step back.

"Doctor!" A nurse called from the other end of the hallway.

Finally getting himself together, at least what was left of him, the doctor looked at both the Isuke and the nurse, and angrily huffed his chest, determined.

"Excuse me."

"Wait." Isuke grabbed the older man by the collar of his coat and tugged him in, leaning close to whisper in his ear.

"Did she really need surgery?"

If her evaluation was correct-

The doctor made a type of pained grunting sound.

"The way her treatment was going, she would have probably been able to go back home to her family in less than a year." The doctor angrily spat back through his teeth, tugging against Isuke's grip.

He looked back at the nurse, conscious of her eyes on him.

Isuke simply tightened her grip on the doctor.

"Haruki's mother... She died because of this? Because you-" Isuke angrily pushed the doctor against the wall, causing the passing patients to murmur and stare at the sound of his overweight body crashing against the wall.

Though others ignored, and continued on their own tracks.

"Me?!" The doctor loudly whispered, interrupting Isuke. He knitted his thick eyebrows in anger.

"I had no other choice! And by the looks of things, you're more to blame than I am!"

Isuke, as if it were even possible, made her grip tighter, causing the older man to gasp for air.

"W-what you did to that poor girl-gah! Will always b-e on your s-shoulders." The doctor gasped, now struggling to break free and breathe.

_'What.'_

Isuke's amber eyes were now wide, and from what any person could tell, they held traces of sheer pain and genuine guilt. Her eyebrows twitched upward, and her mouth was slightly open, expressing surprise and wordless comprehension.

"Is there a problem here doctor?!" An almost frantic nurse interrupted.

The same nurse who had called for him earlier was now walking towards them at a fast and steady pace.

Realizing that was she was making a scene, Isuke turned around.

She noticed that she had caused quite the compelling spectacle, because some patients were even coming out of their rooms to see what the fuss was about.

Abruptly, she let go of the man, causing him to fall to his knees and choke for air.

The doctor rubbed his throat and began to violently cough.

"Isuke? What happened?" Eisuke intervened, reappearing from the other end of the hall.

"N-nothing, Mama."

"Leave my hospital!" The doctor yelled, pointing at the double doors on the other side.

Eisuke grabbed Isuke by the wrist and dragged her forward.

"Our deepest apologies. Excuse us." Eisuke simply uttered in his casual, business-like tone. He pulled on Isuke's hand all the way to the doors; in elevator, and out the lobby.

It had been a quiet and fast paced walk.

Outside, the night was humid, signaling that it had probably rained a little earlier.

Continuing to wordlessly drag Isuke by the hand, Eisuke walked all the way to the parking lot. Stopping, just in front of what Isuke recognized as their black Volvo.

"What were you doing back there?" Eisuke sternly asked, without even looking at Isuke. He finally let go of her wrist.

"What was that?" Isuke quietly asked herself.

"What do you mean?" Eisuke looked serious. "I'm more concerned as to why my daughter had caused such a scene."

"Are you angry at me?"

Sighing in defeat (not that it had been much of a battle), Eisuke slowly turned and faced his daughter.

"You know that I could never be." He gently caressed Isuke's cheek with the back of his gloved hand. His tone, a bit softer now.

"What are you doing here, Mama?" Isuke finally asked.

"Isuke, you're confusing me. I sent you a message not too long ago explaining the details for today. Isn't that why you're here?"

_'Message?'_

Oh.

Isuke remembered that she had in fact received a message from her Mama.

Back in the classroom, the day she had finally cornered Haruki. She had been too distracted and had forgotten to look at it.

"Isuke?"

"Of course, Mama." Isuke instinctively answered.

Isuke bit back her _self-scold_.

Great, now she was lying again.

"Oh, good. Now that we're back on the same page, we can proceed to the next step."

"Next step?" Isuke raised a brow.

Eisuke nodded.

"After we got rid of Hakuto's wife, we would wait. Naturally, from what I've heard, her daughter would come see her." Eisuke rubbed his head, looking troubled. "But considering how we were technically kicked out, this seems a bit more troublesome than I expected it to be."

Isuke swallowed and felt herself begging to panic. Realizing this, she did her best to mask her actual emotions.

"Her daughter would come see her…and then what?"

"We kill her." Eisuke casually and obviously answered.

"What? Why?"

Eisuke noticed something petulant about Isuke's words.

The first hint of actual complain since he had_ adopter_ her.

He sternly looked down on her, suspicious.

"I told you about the threat she may pose against all of us before, didn't I?" He explained.

"You had said that you would wait until her mother naturally passed away, Mama."

"Isuke, I'm concerned as to why you're so worked up about this. Is everything ok?" Eisuke asked, concerned as to why his calm and usually professional daughter was being so reluctant and stubborn.

Though Eisuke was well aware of how stubborn Isuke could be.

Isuke did her best to not look away. She had to be careful with her actions.

Her Mama was a professional assassin, which meant that reading people was nothing but a simple task to him.

She should know, he taught her how.

"No reason." She reassured. "It's just that Isuke would like to know more details. You know how lethal lacking information can be."

Eisuke agreed with a simple nod.

"I know what I said about waiting it out, but the man who hired us was growing impatient." He sighed and glanced in direction of the hospital. "And I figured this would be a better way to flush her out." He worriedly looked back at Isuke. "This was all in my message, Isuke."

Yeah, the ones she didn't read.

Eisuke once again took out his phone and began to text.

"No need to worry. It's going to be taken care of either way."

Isuke shot her Mama a questioning look.

"I have some people in the inside. They say she's here." He closed his phone. "They'll take care of her without anyone knowing."

Isuke's brain felt muddled.

She couldn't fully comprehend what going on.

All she knew right now was that Haruki was in danger, and before her brain had time to register what she was doing:

Isuke was running.

Now that Fuyuka was gone, Haruki patiently waited for Isuke to return. Distracting herself by figuring out ways to not read the document her sister had given her.

She couldn't do it alone.

The door slammed open, making Haruki jump in surprise.

"Isuke-sa-?"

"Oh! Close, but no."

Haruki's muscles tensed.

It took each one of her careful, calculating thought, to prevent her from lunging towards the person who had boldly welcomed themselves.

Haruki gritted her teeth and turned away.

"I don't have time for you. What do you want?"

Hakuto casually strolled into the room, pretending to admire his surroundings.

"We really have to work on this whole unpleasant family reunion type of attitude you've taken towards me."

Haruki bitterly chuckled and flopped herself on the uncomfortable hospital bed. She lacked the energy to even try to hate him at the moment.

"Here to gloat?" Haruki bitterly teased.

Hakuto scoffed.

"Yes, but not quite." He admitted. "I'm here with a better purpose than that. And judging by your high spirits, I'm guessing the job has already been done."

Haruki tuned at his words.

"What are you talking about?" She asked, her tone both confused and dark.

"I really do make you out to be smarter than you look, so please, don't let me down. Try to figure it out. Do you actually think it was Gods will for you mother to simply pass away like that?"

Haruki stood up.

"What?" She practically spat.

As much as it bothered her that her 'ugly' side came out whenever he was around, she just couldn't help it. No matter how much she wanted to.

"Put two and two together. Do you really think your mom truly needed a _mysterious_ surgery?"

Haruki's sucked in a sharp breath, and her mind went blank.

For the first time in as long as she could remember, genuine rage began to consume her.

She launched forward and grabbed Hakuto by the neck.

Taking advantage of the force of her sprint, she pushed him all the way back to the front of the room, and pinned him against the door from which he had entered.

Her eyes were intense, and to Hakuto, they looked a little scary.

He liked that.

And that was something he actually felt proud of.

"Are you responsible for this?!" Haruki pushed against him, practically suffocating him with uncontrollable force.

"C-close. You a-almost got it." He choked, smiling.

"Don't play games with me! You killed her!" Haruki encircled a hand around Hakuto's neck, ready to snap it. "I will no longer hesitate to do the same to you."

"Honey-gah." Hakuto chocked out. "You're being noisy!" Hakuto announced, gesturing to the rattling noise the door made whenever she applied more pressure to her hold.

"Let them hear." Haruki drily replied. Her eyes were sharp, as she solely focused on discontinuing the supply of oxygen to his lungs.

"So you don't mind killing me, is that what you're saying? You don't mind taking another life?" Hakuto desperately spat out. "Is it because you like the thrill of the chase?" He sneered.

"Don't compare me to you!"

At this point, Haruki no longer had any actual control of her emotions. The build-up had led up to this moment.

Her eyes began to water, rather than from pain and sadness, it was from frustration.

Why did things never go her way? Why was the universe and every other powerful entity out there against her?

Against her happiness.

"Would you just hear me out?!" Hakuto's face had taken a blue-ish tint. "Stop acting like such an animal!" He desperately struggled against his daughters hold.

Haruki didn't listen.

"I didn't kill your mother! How could I kill the love of my life?!"

Haruki's muscles relaxed for a fraction of a second, allowing Hakuto's words to sink in. Her eyes which were now pained and confused, had also softened at his words.

This allowed Hakuto to finally gasp for a breath of fresh air.

But that didn't last long.

"Don't lie to me." Haruki tightened her grip once more, this time, stronger.

Hakuto felt himself beginning to lose consciousness. His struggles against Haruki lessened and his eyes began to drop.

"...Kicking a dying dog while he's down, huh?" He finally uttered, bringing his hands up and gently placing them on top of Haruki's, which roughly held on to his neck.

"What?" Haruki sternly commanded, her voice had gotten lower.

"..."

Finally snapping into reason, Haruki let go. "Dying? What are you talking about?"

Hakuto sucked in a sharp breath and tried his best to avoid a coughing fit. He slowly slid down the door and rested on the ground.

"Look at me..." He whispered, weakly gesturing to himself, never meeting Haruki's eyes.

Haruki didn't know whether she should exactly call this state 'dying', but he looked pretty bad.

His usually neat and a groomed hair was slightly messy. He looked thinner, and wore a red shirt which looked worn and old. Instead of wearing his usual leather shoes, he wore flip-flops, revealing worn and unmanaged feet.

He looked like crap.

"You look like crap." Haruki uncaring but almost sympathetically stated.

Seeing him like this, shook her up a bit.

Hakuto looked up, glaring, and unable to properly sit up.

"Thanks, it's a feature every terminal illness tends to bring."

Haruki's features apologetically twisted.

"Terminal illness?"

"It's not important right now."

Hakuto continued to struggle to stand up, but it was to no avail. His body was weak. His resolve, weak as well.

Unable to stand the sight of what was left of once a very strong man, Haruki, out of habitual nature, helped him up.

And she mentally scolded herself for this.

Hakuto sighed and sternly looked at Haruki.

He took a deep breath, and closed his eyes.

"I didn't kill her."

Haruki's cringed at the sound of his voice, causing her to take a step back.

It was the same gentle tone he had used all those years ago.

The same tone that would read her stories before bed.

The same tone he would use, whenever her mom would ground her, and he would ask for permission to enter her room, and make her feel better.

It was her father voice.

"I didn't kill her." He repeated, putting a gentle hand on a shaky Haruki's shoulder, finally opening his eyes.

His very gentle, comprehending, moist eyes.

Haruki had not noticed, but she had been quietly sobbing. Persistent tears continually trickled down her face.

"My reason for being here." He began, taking another deep breath. "I came here to warn you, and to get you out of here."

Haruki blinked back against her tears and pushed his hand off.

"What?" Her voice broke.

"I have someone who works here to hold them back while I got you out. They owed me a favor."

Haruki wiped her face and furrowed her brows, doing her best to manage a glare.

She felt like throwing up.

"Them? Who's them?"

Hakuto never looked away, his eyes showing a type of sincerity and familiarity that unknowing pulled Haruki in.

"The people who killed your mother." Hakuto deadpanned. "They're still here, and they're coming for you next."

Haruki took another step back. She didn't understand what was what anymore.

"You're lying." She growled. "Why would anyone want to kill me? Why would anyone want to kill mom?"

Finally looking away, Hakuto slightly turned away.

His voice came out low and hoarse.

"For the same reason I had done all those terrible things to you back then. Wealth."

Haruki set her jaw hard and took a defensive stance, her body shaking in visible frustration and confusion.

"Whoever said that the world didn't run on money, obviously lied." Hakuto humorlessly chuckled, shrugging.

Haruki didn't find this amusing at all.

Noticing this, Hakuto cleared his throat, and managed an apologetic smile.

"I acknowledge, that I haven't been the best father."

He waited for Haruki's reaction, but she simply stared, her eyes were hard on him, and notably muddled.

"You know, I originally did the things I did to protect you. You and your mother were everything to me."

He admitted.

"But I lost my way. I let myself be blinded by my hunger for power, and ended up hurting you. Both of you." Hakuto's voice was a low whisper. He stole a glance at what he presumed to be, his late wife's bed.

Haruki's head began to pound and her pulse quickened. She's never had an anxiety attack, but there was a first time for everything.

"Why are you doing this? I don't understand. This is all just..."

Too much to take in.

Haruki clenched her head, hoping that the touch and pressure she applied would make the dizziness stop. She felt disoriented.

Hakuto…she couldn't keep up with this.

She hated him.

She was supposed to hate him.

But, she didn't.

Haruki was angry at him, and would care less if he were to drop dead any day. But she didn't hate him.

Maybe it was just in her nature not to.

And hating Hakuto was turning out to be a bigger challenge than she expected it to be.

Especially now.

Now that he's showing traces of the man he once was.

Her father.

Taking another step back, Haruki's eyes flickered towards the door.

_'Isuke.'_

She wanted to see Isuke.

She wanted Isuke to hold her and tell her that everything was going to be okay. That she did in fact hate the man that stood before her.

But Isuke wasn't here. So Haruki would have to deal with whatever she was feeling by herself.

"You don't know how proud I am to call you my daughter."

Hakuto's voice caught Haruki's attention.

She only looked back at him, not fully comprehending his words. Not wanting to listen to his manipulative ways.

How she wished that this whole day was a nightmare she would soon wake up from. Or that the man before her was just an illusion her own unstable emotions crated in order for her to cope with her mothers' death.

Haruki was weak.

That's the reality of things.

With her mother no longer around, she had no life force. She had been blindly breathing and functioning for her family, for so long, that once her hard work began to collapse before her, she didn't know what to do.

She felt no longer in control.

Closing her eyes, she pictured her sibling. That should keep her in check. Even though her mother was gone, she still had to take care of them.

"You turned out to be even more beautiful than I could have ever imagined."

Haruki shut her eyes tighter, wanting to ignore the words.

But she couldn't.

They were comforting.

His voice.

With her eyes closed, she couldn't see. She could only hear…She could only hear the voice of the man from all those years ago.

Haruki quickly opened her eyes and shook her head, realizing that she in fact did yearn for her father.

But he was no longer here.

He had disappeared long ago.

"You look just like your mother." He tenderly added.

"I look nothing like her." Haruki whispered, counting the passing seconds as a distraction.

_'Isuke, where are you.'_

"True." Hakuto mused. "But it wouldn't have been right if I said that you ended up as handsome as me."

Haruki couldn't suppress the smile that followed his words.

"And your smile is still as radiant as I remember it to be."

They shared a silence and Hakuto began to uneasily fumble with the buttons of his shirt.

He took in another deep breath.

"Haruki." He exhaled. "I know I'm too late to be asking for your forgiveness. But could you find it inside yourself to try?"

A million alarms went off inside Haruki's head.

"As much as I would like to, I can't take back the things I did. But please, let me try." Reaching into his pocket, Hakuto removed a folded paper, offering it to Haruki.

She cautiously looked at his hand and knitted her brows, unsure of whether she should take it. The last time he had given her a piece of paper, things had not ran smoothly.

He lightly waved his hand, still offering the paper.

Extending a shy hand forward, Haruki snatched it from his hand, never taking her eyes off him. She knew what he was capable off. Letting her guard down was not a good idea.

"Read it." He calmly ordered.

"What is this?" Haruki asked herself out loud, opening the crumpled paper.

She quietly read through the contents.

"You." Haruki angrily stated, crushing the document between her fingers. "You're responsible for this?"

"Once word got out that you guys didn't have a parental figure nor a guardian, it wouldn't have been long before your family would be taken to an orphanage, and separated."

Then document was a request. A request for custody of Haruki's siblings, and it was under Hakuto's name.

If Haruki had read it when Fuyuka gave it to her, she would have known. But in an attempt to postpone the inevitable, she simple crumpled it inside her skirt pocket. If Haruki had known this, the moment Hakuto had stepped into the room, she probably would have killed him on the spot.

"I won't get close to them." He reassured, defensively raising his hands. "They won't even know who I am. I'm just keeping you all together...It's the least I could do."

Haruki rubbed her temples, and talked through her teeth. "Why are you doing this? I don't get it."

A small alarm went off inside Hakuto's pocket. He removed a type of beeper, the kind doctors usually used.

He clenched his teeth and gripped the small device.

"We don't have much time, we should get going." He sternly announced.

"Who killed her?"

"We don't have time for this now, Haruki." Hakuto panicked.

"Who killed her?" Haruki asked again, her tone was louder and more demanding. Menacing.

"Haruki, we should-"

"Tell me!" Haruki practically shouted, forcefully stepping forward. "Please.."

Hakuto stopped whatever action he was in the middle of and tenderly looked at his daughter. The way he looked at her, Haruki could see clear pity. Not the usual mockery his eyes held whenever they had an unpleasant encounter.

"Inukai." Hakuto finally responded, looking down at his feet.

"Inukai?" Haruki repeated, unsure of what she just heard.

That's when it finally sunk in. Her eyes widened and her heart began to pound like never before.

"Isuke?" She finally breathed out, feeling herself about to cry.

"Yes...and no. Eisuke."

_'He's lying. Isuke would never.'_

"I heard word that they've been after both our heads for quite some time." Hakuto explained. "Watch your back against that Inukai girl."

Haruki was still too dumbfounded to react. Isuke would never do that to her. Not ever.

"She wouldn't." Haruki's whispered, with a blank expression. "You're lying." She said, a little louder this time.

"Your mother is dead! That's more than enough proof, Haruki!" Hakuto practically shouted.

"That could've been you! It probably was you!"

"Open your eyes and smell the nail-polish. That girl is a ruthless killer, do you think something as simple as whatever _'friendship' _you two have would stop her from doing the thing she does best?"

"Shut up. Don't you dare talk about her like that."

"She puts money before anything, and you are no exception. You will never be." Hakuto began walking forward as he spoke, causing Haruki to retreat back.

His words stung.

Because deep inside, Haruki considered them to be true.

Lifting an accusing finger, Hakuto pointed at Haruki. "From where she comes from, you are nothing but a crack on her perfectly paved path. And it's the truth." Calming down, Hakuto relaxed his arm, and let it fall back to his side. "You are well aware of this." He sympathetically pointed out.

Haruki had been reduced to nothing by his words, she numbly walked backwards and sat herself on the bed, and covered her ears. Preventing Hakuto from speaking further _truths_.

Even if she had the whole words against her. The last person she would want to face is Isuke. As cliché as she realized it to be, Isuke had been the sun that lit up Haruki's dull and emotionless world.

With Isuke, everything seemed to be less ugly.

In fact, sometimes the alleged 'ugliness' couldn't even be registered.

But what if..

What if what Hakuto was saying ended up being true?

What was Haruki to do if the person she had unknowingly decided long ago to emotionally invest herself in ended up being the reason why her mother was dead?

The reason why she felt so useless and miserable again.

Hakuto's beeper went off again. He made a face which clearly displayed his discomfort.

"Heave my warning, I've done all I can." He finally said, turning for the door, stopping just in front of the door and placing his hand on the knob. "If you finally decide to believe my words, and it's not too late, please, reconsider what I offered you last time."

Hakuto opened the door a little, just enough for him to peek at what lay on the other side. Relieved, he fully opened it and stepped out into the hall. Revealing hasty nurses and wandering patients.

"My actions may not be the best, but my words are sincere. Keep in mind, that right now, I need you as much as you need me."

Those were his last words.

Contempt, he shut the door, and left and disarmed Haruki, whimpering on the cold hard bed.

Two weeks passed, and they were back in Myōjō. And for days, Haruki did nothing but lay in bed, lifeless. This empty state continued for days in. She didn't even spare Isuke a welcoming glance whenever she returned to the room.

Isuke continually pondered on how she would be of any help to Haruki, if any at all.

Two weeks had already gone by since Haruki's mother had passed away, and Haruki still refused to talk about it.

That day in the hospital, when Isuke had frantically reached the room where Haruki waited for her, to her relief she had been welcomed by the sight of her still breathing red haired companion.

But something had seemed off about her.

Especially in the way she sat, heavily on one of the uncomfortable hospital chairs that was meant for guests. Having to push back her current worry about Haruki's dejected looking state, Isuke had to act fast.

She had to get Haruki out of there.

With no room for her relief to subside, Isuke reached out and took Haruki by the hand, practically dragging her numb body out of the hospital.

Carefully, of course. Isuke had to keep her eyes open for any of her Mama's associates.

She figured that she would eventually have to confront him, and explain why she had stormed off like that; but that would just have to wait.

Back in their room, Haruki lay still, her eyes focused in the ceiling.

Isuke leaned against the wall that dived the living room from the bed room and crossed her arms. Her eyes intently locked on Haruki's still figure.

"Haruki." She tried again, for what could have been considered the billionth time. Her voice was low and somber, but it had been loud enough to cause Haruki's fingers to tighten their hold on her bed-sheet.

Taking a step forward, Isuke caused Haruki to simply tug on her blankets and turn in her bed, giving Isuke her back.

For the past two weeks, this had been the routine.

Isuke would try to talk with Haruki, and Haruki would simply dismiss her presence.

To Isuke, Haruki simply stopped functioning. On many occasions, Isuke had found herself having to remind Haruki to eat, or take a shower.

Sighing, Isuke solemnly sat herself on the edge of the other girls' bed. She wasn't sure about what was going on. She didn't understand, nor knew what to do. She had even begun to dismiss her Mama's persistent phone calls.

Isuke's chest felt tight in despair and apprehensive frustration. She cautiously extended her hand forward and tenderly placed it on Haruki's shoulder.

Haruki stiffened at the touch.

"Haruki..." Isuke tried again.

Still, no repose. Other than Haruki jerking her shoulder, and forcefully brushing Isuke's hand off.

Haruki closed her eyes, silently ashamed of her own actions.

Isuke, not knowing how to react, and not allowing herself to feel the pain and hopelessness Haruki's actions brought, simply crossed her legs and rested her hands on her lap.

She sighed in a mournful manner.

"You know." Isuke began, still trying her best at being soft and careful. "I understand that losing your mother is hard, but you can't continue to be like this." She looked away, unable to continue looking at the sight of her deteriorating roommate.

Truthfully speaking, Isuke's personal guilt regarding the situation had been eating at her, eluding any other thought or distraction.

To Haruki, her mothers' death, was in fact one of the reasons why she had been so 'depressed', but it was far from being the main cause.

If what Hakuto had said was true, her mom died due to unnatural causes. And the cause of this fresh pain could have been triggered by none other than the person she had unknowing decided to emotionally give herself to.

Haruki had no way to prove or disprove the accusation.

And it bothered her how she was taking his words to heart.

As much as she wanted to be there for Isuke; as much as she wanted to be the person Isuke could depend and confide in, Haruki knew that this was far from the truth. She painfully acknowledged this all too well.

And that was the reason Haruki was hurting the most right now.

But Isuke was oblivious to all of this. To her, Haruki was in this state because she failed to cope with the reality of her situation.

Haruki, realizing that staying in bed prodding over her thoughts would accomplish nothing, finally decided that it was time to face Isuke, hoping that she had been worried for nothing.

"Isuke-sama." Haruki hoarsely called.

Her name left a type of melancholic flavor in Haruki's mouth, which lingered until it turned into a type of unnatural thirst.

For the first time in what felt like forever, Haruki had finally called her name. And that alone was enough to makes Isuke's heart leap into her throat, gaining more than just her attention.

Sitting up, Haruki turned her attention to Isuke, she wore a simple blue t-shirt. And adjusting herself to get a better view on Isuke, Haruki leaned forward. Her stern eyes met with Isuke's anxious, and now, hopeful ones.

Isuke was surprised by how much she had missed Haruki's voice. She hadn't responded, but by the way she attentively and softly gazed at Haruki proved that she was more than willing to listen.

"I-" Haruki began, her voice was still horse due to the lack of use. "I have a question. If that's ok.."

Isuke leaned in, and Haruki began to feel herself melt under Isuke's concerned eyes.

But was she really?

Haruki briefly shook her head, dismissing the thoughts.

"What is it? What do you need?" Isuke desperately asked. For once in her life, not feeling ashamed of the pleading tone she was using.

Haruki nervously chuckled and looked away, but regained her resolve shortly after. She took a deep breath and looked back at the girl before her, locking their eyes in place.

"Isuke, did...did you." Haruki had to take a moment to breath. "Did you kill my mother?"

They both sat without speaking, the silence resting between them felt like an uninvited guest. And Isuke eyes were wide and her usually well put features were twisted in what Haruki presumed to be shock.

That's when it happened. What Haruki had feared the most.

Isuke closed her eyes, no longer able to keep her emotions in place, feeling torn. "Where did you hear that?"

"That's not really important." Haruki hoarse answered.

"I'm sorry." Isuke quietly, and forebodingly, uttered.

Tightly shutting her eyes, Haruki was doing her best to bite down the tears that wanted to make their way. She barely succeeded.

"I'm sorry." Isuke repeated, he voice almost breaking. She didn't physically kill her, but she technically did. Her life is what her Mama wanted to protect.

Haruki opened her eyes, revealing an unreadable expression. Her blinking eyes cast down to the carpet on the floor, but when she raised her head, for one second, they showed a flash of anger that Isuke felt as a kick of misgivings to her stomach.

Isuke's hand instinctively went to Haruki's and she held it with a kind of desperation.

"Please, hear me out. Let me explain, it's not really like that."

Haruki knew that she should be interested in whatever Isuke had to say, but she could not overcome the fact that she was faint with hunger, and a little lightheaded.

She practically hadn't had a decent bite to eat ever since they left the hospital that day.

And she missed breakfast today as well.

Her stomach growled.

No matter what the circumstance, Haruki will always be Haruki. And Isuke couldn't help but smile a small smile. One that only Haruki could always managed to evoke.

She reached into her pocket and pulled something out.

"Here." Isuke kindly offered.

It was Pocky.

Though she would have liked to continue this conversation with the outmost serious attitude, Haruki felt compelled to at least accept the battered looking box of Pocky.

Haruki took it into her free hand.

"Where did you get this?" She quietly asked, scanning the wrinkled and poorly handled treat.

"I bought it yesterday..." Isuke looked away. "I thought you could use a pick-me-upper." Looking down at Haruki's hand, Isuke entwined their fingers, Haruki did not resist.

Slightly shaking her head, Haruki sighed.

"You killed my mother." Haruki quietly stated. "Why...would you do that? I- I don't understand. What did we ever do to you...What did_ I_ ever do to you?"

Grasping Haruki's tense and shaky hand, Isuke tried to communicate her feelings; how sorry she truly felt.

"You said that I could depend on you." Haruki dryly chuckled to herself, still looking at the box in her hand. "I don't know about you, but I think this situation makes that kinda redundant."

Haruki shook her head.

"I really don't understand what you're doing anymore. I once though I kinda understood your feelings…but I guess this isn't the first time I've ever been wrong."

Haruki didn't like how she was being so dry and almost apathetic towards Isuke. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, she didn't want to lash out; it was not like her.

Opening her eyes, she looked at Isuke.

Apologetically.

But Isuke understood. Haruki had every right to be that way, and feel as hurt as she did. So there was no actual reason for Haruki to apologize.

"Yes, that may be true, but my feelings have not been a pretense." Isuke explained. "Your mother...she was part of a job that regarded Hakuto. One of my..adoptive parents…was the one who did it."

"Why would he?" Haruki had tried for a calm tone, but it came out as a childish complain instead.

"He wanted to get to you, and Hakuto as well." Isuke continued to explain, looking down at their hands.

Haruki's eyes dropped, miserable, trying to comprehend the full meaning in Isuke's words.

"Why is it so hard for me to accept this?" Haruki mumbled. "Why would anyone want to kill me?" She lifted her eyes and met with Isuke's. "All of this just for money?"

Isuke disagreed with a small shake, trying not to melt under Haruki's sorrowful stare.

"He did it because, well, to him, you're a threat."

Haruki knitted her brows, and leaned forward trying to better understand.

"A threat? A threat to who?"

"A threat to me..." Isuke sighed.

Pulling pack, Haruki's eyes displayed every visible, painful emotion any human could display with a simple look. She tightly gripped Isuke's hand.

"I would never hurt you Isuke." She whispered, hurt and resigned. "I wouldn't even dream of it. If anything were to happen to you- I-I really don't know what I would do."

Isuke maintained her tone low and calm.

"I know. I know that all too well Haruki, but he didn't know that."

"…"

Haruki sighed and brought their joined hands up. She bent her head, and touched her lips to Isuke's fingers, gently; staid.

"Let's go." She monotonously said.

Isuke shot Haruki a concerned questioning look.

Haruki tried, and smiled, for the first time in a while. Isuke was painfully aware of how much she had missed it. Even if this one had been forced.

"Class. I've missed enough already." Haruki playfully rubbed the side of her head with a free hand. "I seriously feel my brain begging to rot." She explained, her usual tone finding its way back to her voice.

"Haruki.."

"I'm sorry for making you worry like that."

But Isuke still felt horrible.

Remembering the doctors words, she realized that Haruki could have had her mother back in about a year, probably. And now there was no mother.

"Haruki, I'm sorry, you don't know how much I-"

"It's fine." Haruki cut her off, and let go of her hand. "It's fine Isuke-sama. I understand that what happened wasn't exactly something that was in your control." Turning and standing up from the bed, Haruki began to stretch out, making her joints crack. "I may be dumb but I'm not stupid."

"Don't say that." Isuke complained.

Haruki quietly laughed, and smiled.

"Anyways, why don't you go ahead?" Haruki gestured to her worn out shirt and pants. She's been in bed a while. "I'll catch up. I really do need a bath."

Isuke politely laughed along, relieved that Haruki was close to being...well, Haruki, once again.

"You really do."

"Hey." Haruki whined.

Isuke stood up and took a step up to Haruki. Leaning forward she placed her hand on Haruki's neck, and pulled her in, tenderly brushing her lips against Haruki's lower jaw.

Haruki closed her eyes at the touch, and sharply exhaled.

Even someone like Isuke knew the limits of her pride.

"I'm sorry." Isuke breathed out once again, her breath caressing Haruki's skin, practically burning the spot.

Only sparing one last glance, Isuke tenderly smiled at Haruki. And without any more words, she quietly walked out of the room, leaving Haruki alone to her bath and her thoughts.

Finally hearing the latch on the door announce that Isuke had left, Haruki flopped down on the bed, and grabbed her pillow, loudly groaning into it.

She was no longer able to keep up her facade.

It had exhausted her, actually. And for a sparing second, Haruki wondered about the actual nature of her relationship with Isuke.

She uncomfortably turned in her bed.

Was it right to lay there and remember how she felt so hurt and betrayed?

Is this what it felt like to be betrayed?

Even though Isuke had been kind enough to try to make her laugh or smile; anything to pull her out of the sorrow that she would sense in Haruki…

Haruki looked over at Isuke's bed, but her image began to blur behind stubborn tears.

It hurt her.

Because she knew that Isuke was not actually to blame. She was painfully aware of that.

But what was she supposed to do now?

She didn't resent Isuke for it.

She could never resent Isuke.

Turning over in her bed, she closed her eyes and began to wonder. And with a sigh she looked over to the nightstand, which harbored the paper Hakuto had given her.

Furrowing her brows, Haruki stood back up and picked the paper up, clutching it between her fingers.

Whether she wanted to or not. Haruki knew what she had to do now.

Haruki crumpled the paper between her fingers and stuffed it inside her pocket.

Determined, she walked towards the small bathroom the room provided, without haste, to her rendezvous, for this was also what she wanted now.

Isuke strolled down the hallway of the main building, where class was usually held. She had not been to class in a while as well, because she had opted to not leave Haruki's side while she mourned in bed.

Being locked in the room meant that she also hadn't seen or heard much from her other classmates.

Not that she cared.

When she reached the front of the door, she did not hesitate to go inside.

"Oh, look who finally decided to show up."

Nio's voice was the first sound to greet Isuke. And after glaring at the small blonde, Isuke's eyes scanned the room.

Mizorogi had not arrived yet, and everybody was present.

As usual, the only two who seemed to care were Kouko and Haru. They already had their class materials laid out on their desks.

"Alone? What a rare sight. Where might your other half be?" Sumireko called from her desk. Regardless of her indifferent tone and posture, she had actually been worried about their absence.

Without even sparing a glance, Isuke sat down on her desk, impatiently exhaling. It's been less than two seconds and she already wanted to leave.

Nio beamed all the way to where Isuke sat, leaning down so that nobody else could hear their conversation.

"So I caught wind of what happened." She casually mentioned with her usual smile and bright, annoying tone.

Isuke rested her weight on one of her hands and closed her eyes, tuning the girl out.

"Wow, good news travels fast around here." She indifferently remarked.

"Nobody else knows. Yuri-san-" Nio cleared her throat. "The Chairman, had informed me soon after the events happened."

Isuke, uncaringly, ignored the girls' explanation. But it did worry her a little, the fact that Nio knew.

Looking around and making sure that nobody was within earshot, Nio leaned closer. Her eyes were sympathetic and her tone, to Isuke's surprise, was serious; soft and almost caring.

"You know that it's not your fault."

Isuke emitted a small grunting sound from her throat.

"Stop pretending to care." She unintentionally growled, never looking Nio in the eye.

This was none of her business.

Nio straightened herself and stretched her arms out, expressively.

"Ah! My sympathy has been rejected." She complained, in her normal nonchalant matter.

Isuke conspicuously looked around the class, noticing that most of the eyes were on her and Nio.

"They're all being forced to stay her like cattle. Not much happens. So when something unusual, such as your constant absence happens, their curiosity sparks." Nio explained, answering Isuke's unspoken question.

Glaring at her audience, Isuke clicked her tongue, and looked away.

"They're worried as well." Nio uninvitedly added.

"I didn't ask for your opinion."

"But it's the truth. Being force to see each other every day creates a type of comfortable familiarity, doesn't it?" Nio happily continued.

"Not really." Isuke mumbled.

"Well, didn't you get comfortable with Haruki by just living with her? Regardless of not knowing her past. Back when you guys had to kill Haru-chan?"

At the sound of her name, Tokaku instinctively twitched.

Isuke didn't respond.

Because she knew it was true.

Just on those firsts few days, Haruki had already, and unknowingly, latched herself into most of Isuke's thoughts.

The door abruptly slammed open, causing Isuke to quickly look, hoping to see the familiar messy hair.

"Sorry I'm late everyone!" Mizorogi-sensei loudly announced, looking rather fatigued. His face brightened, when he noticed Isuke "Inukai-san? Are you feeling better? I've been worried sick." He gave Isuke a genuine concerned look.

In response, Isuke waved a hand, informing him that she was in fact okay.

Sighing in relief, Mizorogi scanned the room.

"Is Sagae-san still sick?" He loudly asked, but his words were directed at Isuke.

All eyes fell on Isuke, once again.

"She'll be here." Isuke simply said, never looking in anyone's direction.

Smiling brightly, Mizorogi walked towards his desk. "Alright then! Let's get started."

Sighing and giving her head a disapproving shake, Nio walked back to her seat.

_'She'll be here.'_ Isuke, reassured herself.

Mizorogi-sensei enthusiastically slammed his hands against his desk. "I guess I'll pick up from where we were last time." He looked at Kouko. "Class Rep. could you help Inukai-san get up to speed later?"

Kouko simply nodded in response to his words, causing Suzu to kindly smile at her.

Mizorogi grabbed some papers from his desk. "So as I was saying last-"

A beeping sound echoed in the room, and everybody instinctively checked their tablets.

"Oh, excuse me. I apologize for the interruption." Mizorogi anxiously fumbled in his pocket, removing a small device, which teachers were only allowed to have.

It was a simple 'pocket tablet'.

Knitting his eyebrows, Mizorogi intently read whatever message he had just received. He looked troubled.

"Everything okay, Sensei?" Haru asked, concerned about how their usually optimistic and bright teacher had made such a face.

"Y-yeah..um." Mizorogi stuttered, now looking both sad and disappointed. Sighing, he put the device back in his pocket.

"I have some…sad news." His tone got everyone's attention. It was unusually low and melancholic. "As much as I'm honored and happy that we are able to be a class one again-"

"Get on with it." Shiena loudly interrupted, causing both Chitaru and Hitsugi to disapprovingly stare at her.

She crossed her arms and sank into her chair.

"S-sorry."

Scratching his head in an uneasy manner, he apologized for his incompetence.

"I've just received a message from the Chairman. It appears as if Sagae-san will no longer be joining us."

_'What?'_

Isuke quietly looked at the man she failed to acknowledge as a capable teacher. Her expression held visible shock.

"I don't have any details, but it appears as if she's transferred out as from this morning." Mizorogi explained.

_'What? Haruki?'_

"Inukai-san, do you know anything?"

This didn't make sense. Haruki was supposed to come. She told Isuke she was coming.

"I didn't know we were playing this game again." Otoya inappropriately commented from her seat, gaining reprimanding looks.

Isuke's head was working at every possible explanation.

But she could come up with none.

Haruki.

Standing from her chair, Isuke confusingly looked at Mizorogi one more time, before exiting the classroom.

Running all the way back to their room, Isuke's hysterical brain would not cease its guilty banging. She began to feel nauseous and uneasy as she forced her legs to move faster and faster than they actually could.

"Haruki!" Isuke panted, forcefully slamming the door to their dorm room open.

No response.

She frantically looked around the still room, and after a careful inspection, she found none of Haruki's belongings in place.

"Haruki?"

The room looked and felt empty, and Isuke noticed something particularly odd.

Haruki's bed, for once, had been neatly made.

Isuke cautiously walked towards the bed, to get a better look.

"Haruki?" Isuke choked out, barely avoiding a sob.

There was a small a box.

The box of Pocky, which Isuke had given to Haruki earlier, lay still, perfectly placed, on top of Haruki's pillow.

Warm tears began to boldly slide down Isuke's face, and as if someone had punched her in the gut, she fell on her knees.

It's funny, how seemingly unconnected events can come together, like a perfect storm, and change the entire trajectory of ones' life.

Because Haruki did what Isuke had sworn shed never let anyone do:

Take a place inside her heart.

**Authors Note: Editing takes a while…sorry. Anyway, I really don't know what else to say, I usually leave notes as a formality to let you guys know that I won't abandon ship yet. I appreciate the patience.**

**As always, I'll try to have the next one out by Saturday.**

**Have a Nice week!**

**P.S. Thank you for the kind reviews, guys. :) **


	13. Chapter 13: November

**Chapter 13: November**

The morning was bright and chilly, exactly what you would expect from the inviting November weather.

Most people liked it when the days were like this; calm and peaceful, and normally, Isuke would be glad for this.

She was particularly fond of this time of the year, always looking forward to it. Because it meant that Christmas was approaching.

Isuke being Isuke, wasn't exactly the holiday cheer type of person. But that didn't mean that she couldn't look forward to the day where her family was guaranteed to be reunited, and spend the day together. With both her Mama and Papa's busy schedule, it was always hard to just get together and enjoy their time as a family.

And ever since Isuke could remember, her parents would religiously make sure that they all spent Christmas together.

Sadly, there was one problem. Right now, Isuke couldn't immerse herself in the usual anticipation this time around.

She had been bluntly rejecting her Mama's calls, and she was too busy drowning in a type of self-pity to even feel remotely pleased with the season.

Isuke was currently sitting in the cold, tiled floor of their buildings roof, listening to the sounds of what she consisted to be, a carefree world just below her. It was her usual spot, where she would usually escape to either make a phone call, or just think.

She lay there, heavily, and lacking the will to get up.

More disturbingly, Isuke realized that this sapping of her inner strength had been going on for some time now.

This sensation she felt, these feelings she now had, had struck her as something completely alien.

Maybe she was depressed?

But depression was an illness, she refused to acknowledge within herself.

Isuke also began to notice the way she had to forcefully haul herself out of bed every morning. Some days, she would just continue resting there, in the same pathetic state Haruki had been in, not too long ago.

She heavily sighed.

She truly did feel like the biggest fool in the planet right now.

Why had she left that day, knowing that there was something weary about the way Haruki had smiled at her?

Why had she left, when she was fully conscious that it was impossible for someone's mood to abruptly change like that? It was weird, even for Haruki.

She truly was a fool.

With a jerky headshake, Isuke forced herself to dismiss the persistent thoughts. If she was even going to try to feel remotely better about herself, she might as well start now.

Leaning her head against the wall, she decided she would entertain herself by watching the slow passing of the clouds. She took this moment to gather her thoughts, but the numbness she felt inside was more than distracting.

It was a type of empty feeling she just couldn't quite wrap her head around, so she closed her eyes, and tried to empty her head.

And in that moment, for once in what felt like an eternity, she felt somewhat at peace with herself.

She would forget about Haruki.

She should forget about Haruki.

Haruki had not even attempted to contact Isuke.

Then again she had no reason to. Haruki had no reason to justify her actions. Maybe what happened had been the last straw. Maybe Haruki couldn't really stand Isuke at all, and finally saw the chance to get away from her.

It wouldn't have been the first time it had happened to Isuke.

Once again dragging Isuke into her other depressing reality, her phone loudly chimed. She wasn't even sure why she carried it around anymore, since she had been avoiding any particular use of it in the past few days.

Glancing at it, she involuntarily, and longingly, picked it up from the floor, where it lay next to her. Hoping that it would be the person whose voice she wanted to hear the most right now.

But she knew better.

Finally answering it, she didn't even have to look at the ID; she already knew who it was.

"Mama." Isuke monotonously answered.

"Isuke where have you been? I've been worried sick. I was about to go to Myōjō myself and find you."

Eisuke, he was clouded by irrational worry for his daughter. Irritation was notable in his speech. They may not always be together as a family, due to their business, but they were closer than any normal and functioning household.

"I'm sorry." Isuke simply answered.

She wasn't exactly in the mood to talk. Then again, she was never in the mood for anything lately. And being in such an unmotivated state had even caused her to stop looking after herself.

Isuke even started wearing a plain leather jacket, which fully covered her usually exposed midsection. Not because she had let herself go, and gained weight, but because she was barely eating at all. And she had taken note of how unpleasantly skinny she had gotten. Her rib cage slightly protruded now.

She was aware that she had to eat properly, but she really couldn't find the energy to. She didn't even show up for class anymore. She simply lounged around the campus's area doing nothing in particular.

"Mama, can I go home already?" Isuke quietly asked. Her voice had come in a notable but subdued rasp.

Eisuke tiredly sighed.

"Isuke...I can't help but feel as if you're beginning to pull away from me. What's going on with you? Even Papa is worried." He said, using the type of tender tone that only a parent could manage towards their child. "Please, let me help you. Talk to us; talk to me."

Isuke went quiet, and looked up at the sky once again, getting back to her mindless cloud gazing. Her eyes were glazed over and tired.

She had worried her Mama again.

She just couldn't do anything right lately.

"Nothing's wrong." She answered, trying not sound as distracted as she felt. "It's just that I've been going through some…some things lately."

This time Eisuke went quiet himself, and knowing him, he was probably analyzing Isuke's every breath. Trying to understand her better. But something he had learned years ago was that no matter how skilled of an assassin and manipulator he was, he would never truly understand Isuke.

And that's just what made her all the more special to him.

"Is this regarding what happened back in the hospital?" He finally asked. Bringing up the topic that Isuke had been dreading. "There was something about you that seemed, well, different."

For a split second, Isuke heard Eisuke murmur something about a passport to someone on his end of the line.

"I don't know what you're doing anymore, Isuke. It used to be so easy." Eisuke's nostalgia was obvious. "You would always tell me how you were feeling, and what you were doing."

Though, he didn't have to worry so much about it, because Isuke herself didn't exactly know what she was doing most of the time either.

"I apologize for prying. I know that I have raised you more than capable enough to solve your own problems, but I still worry."

Isuke now felt unaccountably guilty, because at that moment she sensed a shift in her Mama's tone, when he finished that last comment. She felt a sudden discomfort emanating from Eisuke's, and all of this from a moment's exasperation about her own mistakes.

"Mama, I'm not ten anymore." Isuke forcefully chuckled, trying to lighten her own mood.

"Believe it or not, Isuke, accepting that fact is one of the hardest things a parent has to go through."

Isuke was about to make a witty remark, out of habit really, until she heard Eisuke distract himself once again. He sounded as if he was explaining something but he was speaking, in what Isuke recognized to be, fluent English.

"Where are you?" Isuke finally inquired.

Finishing his other conversation, Eisuke's attention was back on Isuke.

"I have some things I have must take care of in England. It won't take me too long, but you might not hear from me any time soon."

Great.

First Haruki left, and know her Mama would be out of reach for who knows how long.

Eisuke cleared his throat.

"I won't ask for details about what happened back there." His repeated attempt to discreetly question Isuke yielded nothing except a tired smile from the girl the insistence the words came out of his mouth. "Or...how you may or may not be involved in this matter."

"..."

"My family is more important than some job. So please, all I ask of you is to be careful."

Isuke's jaw tightened when her next question arose. Not wanting to articulate her name during this specific moment of discomfort.

"Mama, Haruki...the girl you were after. What more do you know?"

Isuke paused to give the anticipation of his answer a moment to build. And to her chagrin, Eisuke knowingly exhaled.

"I know as much as you do at the moment."

Isuke felt herself grow pale.

"Mama I-"

Eisuke realized that, right now, if he hoped to achieve the status of confidante to Isuke, he would have to make her feel trusting and warm towards him. Not that she wasn't, but it was a given that this is the type of conversation two people would normally have face to face.

Though under most households, you wouldn't be discussing why your parent murdered someone or not. Being an assassin was not exactly a requirement in most cases.

"I'm not angry Isuke. You did whatever you felt was right at the moment."

Isuke felt the hard prod of his answer against her chest.

"You knew?" She breathed out.

"That you were rooming with Hakuto's daughter? I did."

Feeling her mouth open in bewilderment, Isuke quickly tried to regain her slipping composure. This detail had certainly gotten her attention.

"Since when?" She asked, her voice cracking. Her Mama knew she had lied to him. Isuke violated his trust. The same way she had technically violated Haruki's.

She was on a shameful roll.

"Since your phone call. Asking about Hakuto."

She sure messed that one up.

Did she unknowingly dig her own grave?

Isuke slowly stood up and walked all the way to the end of the rooftop, gripping the cool railing.

She watched as the sun stroked the tops of the trees below, and she could hear birds conferring, breaking the still silence of the morning. She felt a little too emotionally exhausted to actually worry about the petty details, but she still wanted to know.

"Then why didn't you do anything?"

"I was curious." Eisuke readily answered. And from the way he answered, Isuke could tell that he felt a bit guilty for his own actions and childish response.

Not even Mama was perfect.

"Curious?" Isuke repeated, gripping the railing harder and glaring down at the morning crowed that walked by below her.

Eisuke took a brief moment to draft out his response. Isuke knew that he would be careful about what he would say. He always was.

"Curious as to why my daughter, for once, had lied to me. To cover for somebody else." When Eisuke spoke, his voice held traces of disappointment, which he quickly dismissed. But it had already reached Isuke. "You'd never do that, Isuke. So I wanted to investigate and find out what kind of relationship you two had. I eventually figured she had to be important to you, but I just didn't know to what extent."

When he finished, Eisuke attentively waited for his daughter to reply. He probably felt guilty for keeping this crucial piece of curiosity from Isuke.

Everything, all of this, could have been peacefully avoided..

"Why did you kill her mother then?" Isuke spoke. Low, fast, and harshly questioning. Not even during her most rebellious period did she ever feel any type of frustration towards her Mama.

There really is a first time for everything.

He was the one that had always taught her to never jump into anything without having the complete facts.

"I didn't want to do it." He admitted. "I didn't do it because I was hired to. I did it because knowing that she was living with you simply raised my anxieties. I still didn't know what her relationship with her father was, or what she was capable of doing to you."

There was no response from Isuke.

"Isuke?"

Isuke disapprovingly shook her head.

"She wouldn't have hurt me." For once, she had never felt so sure and secure about what she was saying. "…Haruki…she wouldn't have done anything."

And with this, Isuke finally realized how unfair this was. Haruki had done nothing but be patient with her, practically a loyal, and loving, puppy. And this is how Isuke showed her gratitude? Despite her actions and the things she would sometimes say (and how she would sometimes treat Haruki), Isuke truly was grateful to her.

"How can you be so sure?" Eisuke asked, unconvinced.

The simple answer that followed burned Isuke on its way out. It was something she never thought she would give someone.

Because nobody deserved it.

Because Isuke had been dead sure that there was no such thing as it.

"Trust."

Until she met Haruki.

At that moment, even she could tell that she had left her Mama speechless. And truthfully, Isuke felt quite speechless herself.

"Trust?" Eisuke repeated, questioning Isuke's statement. If Isuke couldn't believe it, neither could he.

Eisuke was well aware that humans were capable of both giving and receiving this gentle and fragile phenomenon known as _trust_, because he practiced this tender act with his own partner. But he had never expected to see it emit from his hard, stubborn, and selfish daughter.

It actually felt like a delightful surprise.

This unsolicited confession was good fortune, Eisuke thought.

"I trusted her, but…" Isuke cut herself off, her eyes still fixed on the view.

"Isuke?"

Isuke rested her full weight on the railing and anxiously nibbled on her lower lip. She gave the impression of deep thought.

"Mama, what's going on? Why is my chest so tight? Why… Why do I feel like crying?" Isuke confessed. She wasn't exactly sure why she felt this way. She failed to make the connection in her head. Isuke acknowledged that Haruki's disappearance obviously had something to do with it, but she just couldn't figure out why.

Yes, there was something about Haruki that had always captivated Isuke's, but she had yet to realize to what extent.

That night at Hanabusa's wedding party…had it just been the alcohol at work?

The morning after…had it just been a horrible type of hangover?

A bell loudly rang. It was the warning bell. Cass would start soon. And the very idea of being once again imprisoned for nine hours a day in that classroom, overlooking the tarred expanse of Mizorogi's boring lecture, turned Isuke's stomach.

If she was depressed now, she would only become suicidal if she was made to sit at the desk again.

Eisuke drew a long breath.

"I cannot take back what I did, but maybe you can still fix things." Eisuke muttered under his breath, with just enough projection for Isuke to understand the sincerity in his words. How he wished he had a practical solution for her problems.

"I can't Mama. I don't I can't fix this…I don't think there was ever anything to fix in the first place."

"Isuke, listen to me. Nothing is _unfixable_, just ask your Papa. The story on how we met is more than amusing."

"Mama, I don't feel like hearing the corny details right now."

"Your loss." Eisuke chuckled. "But you should really hear it one day, maybe you'll learn a thing or two."

At this, Isuke became aware of an insistent voice in the background, which her Mama was clearly dismissing.

"This Sagae girl, how do you feel about her?"

Isuke heroically stiffened at his sudden question. And the now present silence, combined with Eisuke's clear anticipating patience, startled her.

And Isuke found herself unable to speak.

To Eisuke, if Sagae Haruki was obviously capable of causing this type of reaction in Isuke, there must be something more.

Something more than just simple, platonic, roommates.

"I feel angry…sad, and hurt...humiliated...lost." Isuke honestly answered, after taking some time to properly think of an answer. Her voice shrunk by the word.

Eisuke amusingly hummed.

"Does she know that these are your true feelings?"

Isuke had only mentioned basic human emotions, which were all fighting for dominance inside her brain right now. Why would they make any type of difference in the way Haruki would perceive this situation?

Isuke raised a brow and gripped her phone tighter, feeling a nudging sensation of discomfort in the pit of her stomach.

"Anger?" She finally asked, still unsure of why Haruki would need to know this or how it would be of any relevance at all.

Isuke was smart, cunning, and deeply aware of others, but that didn't mean that she wasn't oblivious to her own emotions.

The laughter that now came from her Mama irritated Isuke a bit. It meant that he knew something she didn't. He always did this when he was quick to perceive something Isuke failed to notice.

And Isuke didn't like that.

It made her feel incompetent.

"No honey, maybe you should figure this one out yourself." Eisuke answered, between the spasms of his controlled and tender chuckles.

Lifting her head up, Isuke glared at the murky blue sky. This conversation went from tampering with her anxieties, to actually bothering her.

Why couldn't he just tell her? It would save her a whole lot of time if he actually explained things, rather than being all ambiguous about it, as usual.

Clearing her throat, Isuke finally felt herself ready to ask something that had been on her head since day one. Even if part of her knew that her Mama wouldn't simply give her an answer.

It had never been that easy with him, and it will never be.

Maybe that's where Isuke gets her stubborn persona from.

"Mama, why do I feel so scared?"

Admitting that she actually felt scared made Isuke feel vulnerable and insecure. But she needed to know why. It was just not natural to her.

Isuke felt Eisuke hesitate, before he finally answered in the most vague way she knew he would.

"That's just part of the beauty of it." Eisuke explained. And this answer really didn't give Isuke any piece of mind. "I'll do whatever I can from this end…to make amends. In exchange, you have to promise me that you won't lose yourself. You have to find this Haruki, and properly express yourself."

Again, Isuke thought of Haruki, and tried to focus. However fleeting the thought, it had managed to awaken a familiar yearning within her.

Would Haruki really understand what Isuke was feeling? Even if Isuke didn't quite understand herself?

Probably.

Haruki had always been good with emotion related things, even if she didn't express how she felt herself most of the time. But that didn't exactly mean that Haruki has to forgive her.

And to Isuke's further agitation, she could hardly picture Haruki's features anymore. She had tried so hard not to, that Isuke's conscious began to dismiss it. The girl already seemed to belong to some past distant life. In fact, she might have been nothing more than a dream.

An enveloping, pleasurable and warming dream, which had passed by too quickly. Leaving Isuke gasping in the icy reality of wakefulness…

The cafeteria was as empty as usual during the mornings. Even more so now that most students opted to having breakfast in the comfort, and warmth, of their own dorms.

Both Tokaku and Haru sat, facing each other, in an isolated table, and away from the small crowd. Haru looked particularly distracted, and concerned.

"What's on your mind?" Tokaku asked Haru, taking another bite of her meal.

"It's Isuke-san." Haru carefully said, still looking at her own plate of untouched food. It was a simple omelet. "She hasn't been herself ever since...well, you know."

Tokaku took one careful glance at Haru, un-attending her plate for a second.

"Since Sagae ditched?"

"Tokaku-san!" Haru scolded, waving small fists. "Don't say it like that."

Giving Haru another brief look, Tokaku continued to eat. At this point, they didn't exactly have to exchange words to know what the other was thinking. With just that one look, Haru knew that Tokaku had apologized for her words.

Haru couldn't help but warmly smile at her.

"So what are you going to do about it?" Tokaku finally asked, causing Haru to feel somewhat taken aback. In her own way, Tokaku was concerned as well.

Haru gave her a confused look.

"About Inukai." Tokaku elaborated.

"Oh." Bringing a hand to her chin, Haru began to think, her eyes squinting as she thought harder and harder.

And after a few more bites of her appetizing curry, Tokaku closely observed as Haru continued to strain herself, trying to hatch some sort of currently in-existent train of thought.

Tokaku smiled at her.

"You don't have to try so hard." She warmly added from the other side of the table. "More than anything, this is between both Inukai and Sagae."

Haru stopped thinking for a second to pay attention to what her companion was saying.

"What do you mean?" She innocently asked.

"I don't think you should get involved." Tokaku explained, genuinely concerned about what Haru was capable of doing.

Disappointed by the response, Haru's eyes fell to the table and she sighed, her shoulders slumping as she did so.

"I won't…" She obediently whined, gaining an approving look from Tokaku. But just like that, Haru's mood rapidly changed, and she excitedly looked up from the table, making direct eye contact with Tokau. She innocently tilted her head, and gave a plotting smile. "You will."

Tokaku stared, wide-eyed, and caught off guard for a moment. This was exactly the type of thing you'd expect from Haru. And Tokaku was still in a love/hate relationship with that aspect of her jittery and overly chipper roommate.

"Please, go talk to her." Haru pled, reaching forward and taking a hold of both Tokaku's hands, causing her to drop her spoon down on the plate.

Blinking twice, and finally able to react, Tokaku knitted her brows. "I won't."

"You will." Haru countered, smiling, yet furrowing her own brows in a playful manner. She was confident.

Tokaku sighed and looked away from Haru's manipulative eyes. She still wasn't used to the whole idea of not having any willpower against Haru's words.

Ever.

Cautiously looking around, and making sure nobody was within earshot, Tokaku leaned forward a bit; her expression was both bashful but relaxed.

"Haru, I don't think you've quite picked up on the fact that Inukai and I don't exactly get along." She explained in her stead.

Haru simply continued to smile a triumphal smile, and tightened her grip on Tokaku's now, somewhat sweaty, hands.

Only Haru had this effect on her.

"Then, Tokaku-san should try to make amends with Isuke-san. Maybe try to get along?"

"Impossible."

Tokaku leaned away and tugged on her own hands, but Haru did not relax her hold. And looking appropriately appalled, by the idea of exchanging words, or worse yet, feelings, with Inukai Isuke, Tokaku looked away.

Haru made a disgruntled face and whimpered.

"But-"

"I won't."

"Tokaku, please." Haru's features hardened in a thoughtful manner, her voice was stern and unshaken. "Do it for me."

Tokaku tried to be strong, and continued to avert eye contact, as she felt Haru's eyes completely on her.

And to Tokaku's dying will, the feeling was both uncomfortable, and enticing.

"Please." Haru calmly repeated.

Tokaku dropped her eyes to their joint hands, and sighed in a much-earned defeat.

"I'll talk to her later." She reluctantly mumbled.

"Tokaku!" Haru practically stood up from her chair in joy. Beaming her trademark Haru smile.

"Just don't expect anything." Tokaku quickly added, trying to put her roommates feet back on the ground. Haru shouldn't expect anything at all. The whole idea sounded like a preposterous disaster to Tokaku.

"Rudely flirting under these circumstances? You guys seem to have no shame."

"Hitsugi-chan." Haru politely and happily greeted.

Hitsugi had just finished walking towards where Haru sat, smiling at both of them.

Tokaku sighed, and completely removed her hands from Haru's currently weak hold.

"What do you plan to do once Namatame sees that ugly side?" She tested, grabbing her spoon, and getting back to enjoying her curry.

This remark made Hitsugi cringe in temporary discomfort. And noticing the sudden change in mood, Haru turned her full attention to Hitsugi.

"Where is Chitaru-san?" Haru asked, looking around the cafeteria. She spotted Chitaru making her way to where they all currently were.

Re-composing herself, Hitsugi smiled at Haru and hugged her stuffed bear tighter.

"She's getting our breakfast, and asked me to save us a seat. I hope you don't mind." Hitsugi pulled on the chair that was closely placed next to Haru, and shot Azuma a defying look.

"Kirigaya." Chitaru's scolding voice could be heard. She held a tray with two plates of lunchroom food. And gently bumping a small fist on top Kirigaya's head, Chitaru sighed.

She had already begun to better understand Kirigaya's true nature, and even went out of her way to keep the small girl in place most of the time.

Hitsugi tenderly massaged the spot Chitaru had lightly bumped, acting hurt, she pouted.

"Sorry." She whimpered. And once again, looked tamed.

Slightly smiling at her, Chitaru restrained the urge to caress the top of Kirigaya's head.

"May we?" Chitaru politely asked, directing her eyes towards Tokaku, who continued to indifferently eat.

Shrugging, Tokaku signaled that it was fine for them to join.

They all now sat in quiet thought for a brief moment. And Tokaku busied herself with her food, while Haru finally decided to poke around her own, and Hitsugi and Chitaru distributed their own meal amongst themselves.

It wasn't awkward.

It was quiet and calm.

But it was still a little unusual. The air had a type of uneasiness that just didn't feel right.

That's when Chitaru finally spoke about what had been on most of their minds.

"Sagae-san. She had once came to me with a problem she had been meaning to solve." Chitaru idled with her own thumbs as she spoke, feeling a small sense of responsibility beginning to take over. "But I never thought that it could be something serious. Because she always looked, so, put together."

Haru was about to make a comment, but was cut short when Nio suddenly burst from behind Tokaku, startling everyone, expect Tokaku herself.

"What are we talking about?" Nio excitedly asked, as usual. She had casually placed both her hands on Tokaku's shoulders, and to everyone's' surprise, she had allowed it.

"She who shall not be named." Tokaku calmly answered, finally finishing her meal. She diligently wiped her mouth with a spare napkin Haru had earlier offered.

Making a face, which reflected insightful realization, Nio pulled the chair next to Tokaku back, looked around the table, and sat herself down.

"So Isuke-san is the problem?" Nio doubtfully asked, glancing at Haru with questionable eyes. "Well I can say I'm pretty surprised. I expected Isuke-san to eventually pull this stunt on Haruki. I had never imagined that it would be the other way around.

Unethically leaning against her chair, Nio fumbled with something on her lap and eventually brought into view her signature Melon Bread. She took a big yearning bite, and closed her eyes, enjoying the delicious flavors.

Everyone carefully watched her.

"Is that all you're having?" Chitaru worriedly asked. She had always stricken people as the cool prince type, but that was far from the truth. She was actually the overly motherly type.

"Continue as you were." Nio simply replied, taking another enthusiastic bite.

"So what do we do?" Hitsugi finally asked, her words were directed to everyone, but she looked at Chitaru when she asked.

Haru brought her hands together and smiled.

"Tokaku-san is going to go talk to Isuke-san about it." She reassured, causing Tokaku to avert her eyes.

Nio dropped her Melon Bread, mouth open and eyes wide, in an attempt to exaggerate her shock. And Chitaru choked on her glass of water, trying to control an upcoming coughing fit.

Hitsugi weakly smiled at Haru.

"Um...Haru-chan. Have you completely thought this through?" She cautiously asked, glancing at Tokaku, who was now impatiently tapping her fingers against the table.

"I say we let her try." Chitaru intervened, gaining everyone's attention and a few questionable looks from both Nio and Hitsugi. She leaned back into her seat and raised two defensive hands up, anxiously waving them. "I'm saying, that out of all of us, Azuma has a better shot at communicating with Inukai-san."

Everyone continued to look at Chitaru as if she belonged in a mental ward.

Except Haru.

Haru just brightly nodded, agreeing.

"T-think about it.." Chitaru finally finished, wanting to get away from the judging looks.

Resting her hands on the table, Nio looked deep in thought. "Worth a try." She added, in a soft and somewhat serious tone.

"Now that I think about it, I really don't think this is something we should get involved in. I mean, we are just here pretending to be a class. No need to actually be one." Hitsugi finally spoke, saying what Tokaku had not dared to say. Just because it would earn her a disappointed look from Haru.

"But that doesn't mean we can't be friends." Haru kindly added, in her very naïve and Haru-like manner.

"Friends." Nio confirmed with a warm smile. She wasn't letting it go to her head, but deep inside, she was happy. For the first time, she was actually communicating with others.

Interacting normally.

She wasn't lonely. To her, Yuri-san was more than enough. But still, part of her yearned for that school-like experience she always saw on TV.

She yearned for mutual connections with others.

Friends.

And being the _chaperone_ of the Black Class didn't really allow for any of that.

Chitaru approvingly smiled at the statement.

And Tokaku sighed.

The weight of their expectations was now on her shoulders, and she was more than reluctant to do anything about it…

To Isuke, the notion of constantly having Haruki around had always struck her as something strange. It was like having an extra limb you didn't particularly feel bothered by.

It had been an unfamiliar feeling that didn't exactly strike her as either odd or wrong.

Just puzzling.

But now that she was once again _alone_ most of her time, she realized that she had taken that alien body part for granted. Waking up every morning and no longer seeing that familiar silhouette on the opposite bed just enhanced the strange feeling.

Isuke was currently aimlessly walking around their building once more, not wanting to go to class. She had not been keeping track of either her location or steps. She simply walked.

And coming to a stop in the familiar glass hallway, which connected one section of the building with another, she began to feel the unpleasant sensation of familiar eyes watching her.

Humorlessly chuckling, Isuke grinned at her own reflection in the glass.

"Nostalgic, isn't it." She remarked aloud.

Without answering her unintentional challenge, Tokaku finally appeared from the other end of the small hall. She looked as un-phased as Isuke felt about her own comment.

Wordlessly, Tokaku walked to where Isuke stood, but cautiously kept a formidable distance between them. She didn't exactly trust Isuke, or feel comfortable in her presence.

Noticing this, Isuke crossed her arms and sighed. Her eyes were fixed forward, but they weren't focused on anything in particular.

They stood in a shared silence, for what Tokaku considered way too much time. She didn't even want to do whatever it was the others expected her to do. She didn't even know what she was supposed to do in the first place.

Looking forward, Tokaku noticed her own reflection, and recalled the events of that stormy night not too long ago.

"Pathetic." She finally broke the silence with a single insulting remark.

Isuke spared a single side-glance, raising a brow.

"Excuse me?" She low and bitterly remarked, well aware that Azuma's comment had been directed at her.

Tokaku glanced back from the corner of her eye. Both of them were starting to feel hostile towards one another.

"You're not the same person you were last time we were here." Tokaku freely commented. Uncaring of whether she was striking any of Isuke's nerves.

Isuke scowled at the girl beside her, feeling her muscles grow tense.

"I'd say that neither are you. Being Haru's lapdog has really weakened whatever menacing aspect you once had. You know, for a virgin."

"The fact that I have not killed anyone is a virtue I am no longer ashamed of."

It was a calculated move, this last sentence.

Isuke caught the reference at once.

In the past, she had noticed how insecure Azuma had been about the fact that her hands were still clean. You also had to take into consideration the weigh her name brought. Even Isuke had been surprised when she had found out that the _almighty Azuma_ was nothing but bluff.

But now, Isuke couldn't sense that insecurity Tokaku had once carried.

Isuke had always been good at reading people and figuring out the things that they didn't want to say, thanks to her Mama, so it was clear as day how comfortable Tokaku finally felt in her own skin.

And was this all thanks to Haru?

Is that overly chipper girl the reason Azuma was finally able to have a piece of mind?

It wasn't impossible.

Haruki was able to stir things in Isuke that no other person could have dreamed on ever doing.

No longer caring about how she was being perceived by Azuma, Isuke sighed.

"Have you ever felt betrayed by Haru?"

She had not even looked in the other girls' direction, her eyes were still glued on the nothingness she was currently experiencing. And Isuke was well aware that she had only thrown Haru's name into the _conversation_ trying to trigger a type of concern from Azuma.

Carefully raising her brows, Tokaku bluntly looked at Isuke, a bit startled by the question. She had expected a fight, not actual talking. And she would have never expected someone to ask her something like that, and if she did, she wouldn't have expected Inukai to be the one asking the question.

This next step would be a more active decision from Tokaku's part, to give away information that she had convinced herself that she would never share with anyone, just because she didn't want to remember.

Straightening herself, she looked out the window, and frowned. Tokaku didn't really want anyone to know about this, so why in the world would she talk to Inukai about it?

Cautiously, she glanced once more to Isuke's direction.

To the normal eye, Isuke looked fine.

She still carried herself with her usual boasting grace, and even if she had gotten slightly thinner, she looked neither frail nor weak.

But to someone who had been trained all their life to better understand threats and watch others in order to defend themselves, or in Tokaku's case, defend others; looking at Isuke, was like watching a slow train wreck unfold before her eyes.

Sighing, she decided to proceed with her current approach, finally answering the question Isuke had probably asked just to break the silence.

But Tokaku knew better.

Inukai wouldn't just ask a question to relieve another person from their discomfort. She genuinely wanted an answer.

"Once." She finally answered, narrowing her eyes.

This response caught Isuke's attention, but she tried as best as she could to look uninterested in the details. She placed her hands inside the pockets of her leather jacket, and looked at Azuma.

Tokaku could feel Isuke's eyes watching her, and trying to read her sincerity.

"What did you do?" Isuke finally asked, in a low and subdued tone.

Tokaku slowly turned in her heels to get a better look at Isuke. As much as she hated to recall the memory, or the feeling, she did not hesitate to answer.

"I stabbed her."

"…What?"

Isuke instinctively leaned away from what she now considered to be an unstable and psychotic person. This simple and blunt answer had caught her attention way more than it should have. It was an uncharacteristically humorless.

But it was the truth.

She knew Azuma was weird, she just didn't know to what extent.

Until now.

Tokaku noticed the particular metallic and strange smell in the air. A storm was to come.

"You know, that it's hard to tell whether you're trying to be funny or not." Isuke finally retorted, raising a careful brow.

Un-phased by what should have been a particularly hurtful comment, Tokaku simply looked at Isuke. Her eyes displayed a type of icy-blue sincerity that Isuke could not explain, but managed to comprehend.

"You have a particular way of showing people you care." Isuke finally mumbled, unsure on whether this conversation was even happening. And distracting herself once again, Isuke turned to look out the window-wall, and sighed, her shoulders slumping.

She concluded that Tokaku really was as useless as her when it came to displaying emotions apparently.

_'But I would never lunge a knife down Haruki's throat.'_

Stopping herself, Isuke realized what she had just mentally implied.

That her relationship with Haruki, was close, or remotely similar, to that of Haru and Tokaku's.

The thought should have made her cringe in repulsion.

But it didn't.

"Do you feel betrayed?" Tokaku finally asked. Probably trying to figure out what Isuke was going through, judging by her own experiences.

Isuke couldn't help but grin, and sigh. A low chuckled escaping her lips.

"No, I betrayed her. I guess."

Tokaku crossed her arms, and went back to staring at her own reflection.

"I can't quite comprehend what you're feeling."

As much as it irked Isuke to have others meddle in her own affairs, especially anyone from the Black Class, she couldn't help but feel...grateful. The same way she hand grown fond of Haruki. The other class members had started to warm up to her, one way or another.

Of course, she would never say this.

Acknowledging it was painful enough as it is.

"How would you feel if you woke up one morning and Haru just disappeared?" Isuke calmly muttered.

This was good.

She was making a scenario so that Tokaku could better understand her 'predicament'.

Tokaku took this moment to think.

"I thought I had lost her once." She finally answered, trying not to let the emotions that the memory triggered show. "It wasn't a pleasant feeling. I can manage to sympathize that much."

Isuke was unhesitant with her next question.

"For that short amount of time you had thought you lost her, how did you cope?"

"I didn't."

This had not been what Isuke was expecting. So the disappointed expression she now wore was more that visible.

Tokaku noticed this.

She finally noticed that this was something that was truly affecting Isuke.

Isuke needed empathy. And Tokaku could not fully provide that.

"How do you feel about her? Sagae." She finally asked. More than anything, she asked hoping that this would trigger a chain reaction in Isuke's mind, and she could solve her own problems.

"What kind of question is that?" Isuke scowled. It was the same question her Mama had asked her earlier. And for some reason, it irritated her.

"Probably one that has an answer." Tokaku remarked back, challenging with a grin. She didn't want to be insensitive towards Isuke, but she had to admit that irritating her brought a type simple pleasure.

Compensation.

Noticing that this was Tokaku's way of being 'playful', even if it was forceful, Isuke couldn't help but laugh a bit.

"Sharp tongued aren't you?"

"I'm not exactly here by my own will."

Interrupting footsteps we re suddenly heard.

"Someone get me a knife, because we're about to cut some tension." A voice, bright and out of the blue interfered in their 'moment'. "Or would you guys rather I used a scissor?"

It was Otoya, to their dismay.

She happened to be passing by and just thought that it would be a great idea to pry into whatever business didn't concern her.

"Flattering." Isuke coolly and indifferently said. She wasn't particularly bothered by the fact that Otoya had dropped by. But you know what they say: three is a crowd. "And you wonder why Ken'mochi sleeps with one eye open."

Smiling, Otoya had yet to register whatever Isuke was implying.

Then it hit her.

"Wait, does she?" She gasped. Anyone could tell just by looking at her that she was aiming to be playful. But Isuke and Tokaku felt as if they knew better. Isuke's comment had poked at an open wound Takechi had yet allowed to heal.

Probably.

Though Tokaku felt relieved. She knew that their conversation was going nowhere, and that trying to sympathize and be 'kind' to Inukai just didn't work for her.

"What do we have here? A pity-party? Forgive me for not dressing for the occasion."

It's official, the hallway now felt extremely cramped. And Isuke instinctively rolled her eyes at the upcoming person.

Shutou had decided to join as well. This 'coincidence' was just pushing the envelope.

And looking as chipper as usual, Otoya placed a determined and overly friendly hand on Suzu's shoulders, gaining a polite smile in return.

"Ah, Suzu-chan. What a rare sight. I found these two together." Otoya explained, pointed at both Tokaku and Isuke. Both of them looked a little bothered by the fact that they were caught together.

People might get the wrong idea.

They might think they get along.

Or worse.

That they are friends.

As if they were both thinking the same thing, Tokaku and Isuke simultaneously shivered at the thought.

Kindly smiling, Suzu already understood what was going on, and felt somewhat apologetic for contributing to the interruption.

"Then you shouldn't have interrupted." She reproached to Otoya. But her curiosity got the best of her. "But now I'm intrigued, what kind of unnatural force has brought the two of you together?"

For that one-second, they all stood in an enlightened silence.

Haru.

It was the obvious answer.

"What may we help you with?" Suzu asked turning directly to Isuke, and shooting her an understanding look. She knew all too well what it felt like to lose someone dear. So the sympathetic and warm tone came naturally.

A type of frustrated grunt came out of Isuke's throat. She really wanted to stay composed and focused, but she was finding that particularly hard to do right now.

"I don't need help." She looked at Tokaku. "And I don't need to understand any 'feelings'."

That last bit caught Suzu's attention.

"Feelings?" She inquired.

"Nothing." Isuke dismissed, fully turning her back on her current audience.

This annoyed her, because it didn't concern any of them.

"How she feels about Sagae." Tokaku calmly explained. More than anything, it was in an attempt to strike a nerve in Isuke. No matter what, rivals will be rivals.

Or hated colleagues.

Otoya hummed and crossed her hands behind her back. She began to rock back and forth on her heels.

"Maybe she eloped?

Suzu gave Otoya a look and smacked the back of her head. It wasn't a hard smack, but it was just strong enough to get her point across.

"You should really get into learning some manners." Suzu kindly pointed out. Otoya not being able to read the mood just didn't work for anyone.

Poor Shiena.

But the truth is, Otoya is just bad at handling serious situations. Especially those which involved emotions. So this was just her own way of showing she cared.

It was weird; and it wasn't right.

But she tried.

That still didn't justify her need to cut those she loved, though. She would have to work that one out herself later on.

"So how do you feel about Haruki-san?" Suzu continued to pry. She well knew that she shouldn't be getting involved, but Suzu had already been keeping a close eye of both Haruki and Isuke. And she had just gotten tired of simply watching things slowly crumble before her.

She was too old for a simple and stubborn lovers quarrel.

And it was time to act, before things got worse.

"There's nothing to feel." Isuke confidently shot back, securely tightening her crossed arms against her chest.

Otoya took a moment to think before she spoke. But that served no purpose.

"Is that why you've been a walking corpse?" She bluntly asked.

Isuke quickly turned her head and shot the simpleminded girl a menacing scowl.

"Weren't you just told to shut up?"

"No." Raising a hand, Suzu signaled Isuke to calm down. "She can say useful things every now and again."

"Stop butting in. This doesn't concern any of you." Isuke argued back. She was really irritated now. It felt as if they were purposely poking at her open wounds.

And the fact that she had open wounds at all, open for the poking, agitated her more.

"But it does."

Out of the other extremities of the hall, Sumireko graced the group of four with her presence.

"It's getting a little crowded here." Otoya mumbled. And this statement was actually true. The area was extremely packed right now.

Cramped with an odd pair of people.

"I apologize, am I being the fifth wheel?" Sumireko asked, directing her attention to each and every one of them.

"Azuma-san and Isuke-san were having a moment." Otoya explained.

"Which you had originally, and boldly interrupted." Suzu complied.

At this point, Isuke's irritation was very obvious. Other than refusing to look at any of her classmates, she anxiously bit her bottom lip and cracked her knuckles in an attempt to relieve some of her tension.

Sumireko walked up to Isuke, carefully brushing the other girls aside.

"Inukai-san, whether you wish to acknowledge it or not is your choice." She sternly began. "But we're all companions here." There was something in her tone that particularly stood out.

She sounded impatient.

She wasn't particularly fond of Isuke, but she didn't hate her. Especially after what happened back in her wedding party.

"We're friends." Flashing her bright and optimistic smile, Otoya summarized what Sumireko had been carefully trying to imply.

That very statement caused Sumireko to direct her attention to the ground for just a brief moment. She knew what she had been trying to say, but when somebody puts it bluntly like that, she couldn't help but feel embarrassed about it.

She had her own pride.

Suzu couldn't help but laugh, her slim frame shaking in amusement.

In all her years, she had never come across such a particular bunch. In a way, she felt blessed, rather than cursed right now.

Isuke let the words sink in.

_'Friends?'_

"No such thing." Isuke finally muttered, her eyes, saddening. She thought she had made a 'friend' once. But she got up and left. Not that it mattered.

Feeling as if her momentary embarrassment had been in vain, it was Sumireko's turn to feel irritated.

"Stubborn as always." She expressed, slightly clenching her jaw. "How about you put all that excess energy you use to mope around to good use and figure out what you're going to do now." She said all of this, angrily pointing at Isuke. Her brows were tensely knitted and the corners of her mouth twitched as her words continued to flow out. "As far as I'm concerned, staying still won't solve anything."

Sumireko's emotions had gone from irritation to genuine anger in a flash. The thought that Isuke was doing nothing to find the person she obviously cared for got under her skin.

And in response, all Isuke could do, was look away.

In all her years had she ever felt so small and weak. And it didn't help that the person who was causing her to feel this way right now was none other that the spoiled Hanabusa.

Isuke felt as though she just reached a newfound low.

Suzu placed a calming hand on Sumireko's tense shoulder. Even she felt a bit baffled by the small outbursts.

Otoya looked pretty calm about the fact that Sumireko's usual composure was slipping. She knew that Sumireko was a mechanical ball of crazy, so she actually admired this side of her.

"Don't you want to see her?"

Isuke, for the first time since Haruki left, actually thought about it.

Did she want to see Haruki again?

No.

She didn't _want _to see her again.

She _needed_ to see her again.

This wasn't one of those scenarios were the damsel couldn't live without her prince, and eventually die unhappy and alone.

Isuke was more than capable of properly living her life with or without Haruki in it.

But if Isuke had to chose.

She'd rather have Haruki around.

She'd rather have Haruki in her life.

Isuke clenched her teeth, and relaxed her hands, letting them fall to her side. But eventually curled them into small, agitated fists.

"I'd like to punch her."

As much as Isuke felt the urge to cry beginning to take over, she just wouldn't allow that.

"Isuke doesn't remember giving her permission to leave." Now grinning, Iuske brought her hands together. "She has to learn her place." She said all of this, with newfound determination, and her usual menacing-Isuke tone.

She really wanted to find Haruki. And there was no doubt anyone's head, that she would actually punch Haruki if ever reunited.

Grinning, Sumireko scoffed.

"Well, you better go find her, and punch her as hard as you can. On our behalf as well."

As cliché as all of this sounded, Isuke didn't mind. She felt better, and had a new mission on her hands.

She had a punch to deliver.

**Authors Note: Well, I'm back (for the most part). As usual, I will once again aim for Saturday-ish updates. I apologize for the wait and the mistakes. It's late and I shall hunt them down in the morning.**

**Happy reading/Weekend~**

**P.S: Anyone willing to guess where Haruki is?**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

The ready jets of hot water created damp wisps of soft vapor that rose about Sumireko's head as she carefully watched her reflection in the mirror, which was neatly and conveniently placed inside the shower.

The breathes of steam were already touching its sparkling glass surface. Slowly making opaque the area around her face, until the white translucence of it entirely obscured her features.

Sumireko knitted her brows in both a tense and pensive manner, challenging her own reflection into what any person would consider a futile staring contest.

Sumireko usually avoided these types of expressions, because other than harming her always-collected image, stressing will only cause her skin to age faster, and wrinkle.

And she wouldn't like that either.

Turning of the faucet, she lifted her hand up and slowly brought a fingertip to the mirror. Tracing uneven lines along the no longer reflective, and foggy surface.

Her brows knitted further in subdued agitation.

For a while now, something had been bothering her.

It was something that had always managed to prod its way back into her current thoughts every time she lowered her guard…

Thankfully enough, Haruki's little _stunt_ had been good enough a distraction that her usual concerns were re-written with new ones, such as Haruki's whereabouts, and so on.

_Click._

A particular and pitched crystalline noise startled Sumireko back into her reality.

Trying to locate the source of the sound, she glanced at her feet, hoping that she had not stepped on anything. Especially not Mahiru's rubber ducks, which were technically a memento Shinya had left behind.

She glanced at the showerhead, which had small-accumulated droplets of water trickling down. The droplets made a sound when they reached the shower floor, but it wasn't as high-pitched as the one Sumireko had heard.

Maybe she had imagined it?

Looking at her finger, which had been drawing a trail earlier, Sumireko's eyes uneasily widened and a small, barely audible gasp escaped her lips.

She quickly drew her hand back, away from the mirror, and took a few startled, clumsy steps back. Suppressing the sudden and uninvited emotions of both anger and devastation.

There was a small hole in the glass like object.

Unknowingly, she had accidentally punctured a hole through the mirror, causing further cracks along the no longer smooth surface.

After a careful inspection, she brought her hand up to her chest, denying to herself that whatever had just happened, had actually happened. But it did nothing to relieve her of her upcoming panic.

What was she to do now?

Banba had taken her bath earlier, so she had no actual reason to step inside the shower for the night...

Sumireko concluded that she would dispose of it after Banba was out cold in her bed for the night.

This was not a frequent occurrence, but it still happened.

Sometimes Sumireko would simply get distracted or sidetracked, and not keep tabs on the amount of force she was using. That's when things like _this_ would happen.

She would break things.

This is what always bothered her; this was her main insecurity.

She was not entirely _normal._

She had unintentionally hurt others in the past as well because of this. Be it because she had accidentally applied a little too much pressure to a clients' hand when finishing a business deal, or because she would unintentionally pet a puppy just a little too hard..

But what frustrated her the most, was that whenever she thought she had finally gained total control over her prosthetics, things like this would happen.

And truthfully, the fact that she was technically mechanically engineered had never truly bothered her. In the past, she would sometimes see it as convenient…up until she arrived in Myōjō.

And she knew exactly why.

"Hanabusa-san..are you alright..? Y-you've been in there a while..." A sweet, almost muffled voice called through the other side of the bathroom door.

Sumireko released a long, practically exasperating sigh.

Banba Mahiru.

Currently the only person alive who was able to shake whatever resolve and inner strength Sumireko once possessed.

Sumireko's eyes saddened, and she examined her fingers. Any normal person would have probably pierced, or cut through their skin. Any normal person would have probably cried out in pain.

Especially if they had punctured a hole through a sturdy mirror with their bare fingers.

But hers looked intact. Not a single scrape.

Any normal person would have felt that.

But if it hadn't been for the sound of actual glass shattering, Sumireko probably wouldn't have noticed.

She furiously breathed out and wiped her face, clenching her hands into fists. Through some massive force of will, she had controlled her heavy urge to cry, un-allowing any tears to escape.

She was stronger than this.

If she had gotten a little more careless, she could have broken a hole through the wall.

It has also happened before.

"Hanabusa-san?" Mahiru called again, this time without stuttering.

Sumireko heard the other girl beginning to fumble with the doorknob.

That's when it hit her.

What if one day she were to accidentally hurt Banba?

"Don't come in." Sumireko answered, with a little more urgency than she had originally intended, failing to mask her panic as soon as her voice broke. "I simply…dropped something.

Mahiru was quiet for a second.

"You sure..?"

Closing her eyes, Sumireko sighed again. Terrified with herself.

"Please, don't mind me. Would you mind preparing the tea this time? I'm a little too tired." Sumireko loudly asked, making sure that Mahiru had heard her, and hoping that would put the other girl at ease.

There was no answer, and for a second Sumireko assumed that Banba had already left, until a soft 'okay' replied her earlier request.

Sumireko couldn't help but smile a bit.

Her moods were simply no match against Mahiru. And lately, the girl had been less…shy.

Sumireko was not complaining. She was more than pleased with Mahiru's slow but steady improvements. She stuttered a lot less, and she was able to provide full answers whenever Sumireko would ask her something.

They also had tea every night now.

That was also nice.

Stepping out of the shower, Sumireko carefully dried herself off, and slipped into her nightgown, which was accompanied by a thin, silky robe. Her hair was still a little damp from the shower.

Taking a deep breath, she finally decided that it was time to step out of the bathroom.

She would have to do something about the mirror later.

Sumireko felt slightly more coherent with her thoughts now, but she still felt a headache beginning to set in. With gentle fingers, she took a moment to smooth down her hair, in an attempt to make herself look a little more presentable.

"Banba-san?" Sumireko carefully called, cracking the door open and peering out into the room.

Their room was the same as the rest of the other rooms, with the only exception of this one being slightly bigger, and better lit. The furniture was all the same as well, except it all had more of an elegant undertone to it. Different colors as well.

Sumireko continued to look around, now inspecting the next section of the room.

She found Mahiru in the living area, carefully preparing the tea at their usual table, which Sumireko had especially gone out of her way to order in a small size. Just so that she could sit closer to Banba, whenever they sat together.

Mahiru had randomly approached Sumireko one evening, and asked if she could teach her how to prepare tea.

It had been more than a pleasant surprise, considering that the gesture had come from Mahiru herself.

And after that, every now and again, Sumireko would receive the delightful surprise of already-made tea, sitting at her spot on the table.

Honestly, it wasn't the best tea.

Mahiru still needed years of practice before she could reach the level Sumireko was in.

But Sumireko was sure that it would always be the most delicious tea she will ever have.

At the table, Mahiru was already waiting and mixing the different herbs and fragrances, until the liquid finally took the color it was supposed to have. And without words or further hesitation, Sumireko decided to finally join, sitting in her usual spot.

Mahiru reached forward, and politely poured Sumireko's drink out for her, never making eye contact.

There was something particularly tense about the air around them tonight. Mahiru's hand shook with what Sumireko presumed to be anxiety, as she poured the tea into her cup.

Not understanding what could be causing such discomfort to her roommate, Sumireko began to map out possible causes, and failed to come to a liable conclusion.

Maybe it was because Mahiru was still not entirely used to the fact that they spent time together during the night now that Shinya wasn't around?

But that conclusion was far from the truth.

Yes, Sumireko was partly the cause of her anxiety, but it was for a whole other reason.

Tonight, Mahiru decided, was going to be the night she would finally confront to Sumireko about that particular night.

The night of the wedding party…

The night Shinya had ultimately crashed said party.

The night Shinya had flung Sumireko's soon-to-be husband down who knows how many stories.

The night Sumireko's soft and tender lips had forcefully greeted Mahiru's with their warmth…

Abruptly shaking her head, Mahiru forced herself to calm down. She wouldn't be able to focus properly if she kept thinking it over and worrying too much about it. But the sharp movement caused her to accidentally spill her own tea, staining the bleach white cloth that covered the table.

"I-I-I'm s-so sorry, Hanabusa-san..!" Mahiru stuttered, practically standing up from her chair, and frantically looking around. Trying to locate something she could use to clean up her mess.

"It's fine, Banba-san. Don't worry." Sumireko eased, lifting one hand and gesturing Mahiru to calm down.

This bothered Sumireko a bit. Because for a while now, she had been trying to judge Banba's mood. Her feelings as well, as she often found herself doing now.

Mahiru wasn't one to open up or say the things she was actually thinking. So on many occasion, Sumireko would find herself trying to see how she could bring up specific subjects with her.

Particularly the subject regarding her wedding party.

Truthfully, Sumireko had purposely avoided the subject about that night.

It's not that she didn't wish to talk about it, on the contrary, she had been dying to just throw everything on the table and see what would happen.

But she was afraid of scaring Mahiru away.

That night, after the small squabble with the guards, Sumireko had delivered Mahiru back to her bed, and patiently waited for her to wake up. And when she did, Mahiru had felt too embarrassed to talk about anything.

She simply hid under the shelter of her blankets, until Sumireko finally gave up on trying to talk about it. From then on, none of them even attempted to bring it up. Not once.

Closing her eyes, Sumireko brought her freshly served cup of tea up to her lips, and took a pleasurable sip.

"You seem.. troubled. " She finally said, slowly putting her cup back down on the table and intently looking at Mahiru. "Is there anything bothering you?"

"N-no..it's just that I have something I would like to….discuss with you. If that's ok.."

She sunk lower and lower in her chair as she spoke, averting her eyes, from the conscious ones that pierced through her chest.

Sumireko's features dropped in dejection when she saw how her roommate was acting. Banba was once again acting shy and reserved towards her.

'_More than usual.'_ Sumireko though, saddened by this fact.

"Have I done something which has caused you any type of displeasure, Banba-san?" Sumireko asked, lowering her eyes to her hands, which were tightly clasping her cup now.

Preparing herself, and afraid of the response that may come.

Because she had indirectly breached the subject both of them had been carefully avoiding and acting ignorant towards for far too long.

And Mahiru was not dumb in regards to this. She noticed Sumireko's subtle approach to the subject.

Now was the time.

Now was her chance.

Mahiru took a deep and uneven breath.

"A-A-A-A-A-ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED THAT NIGHT…" A wide-eyed and panic-stricken Mahiru tried. Her usually sooth and pale complexion had been aggressively painted a dark scarlet.

Loudly clearing her throat and trying to push back the weird warmth that was now finding its way up to her cheeks, Sumireko sat back down on her chair, and neatly placed her hands on her lap.

"T-that night?" Sumireko continued, trying to look as composed as she could.

As composed as she was always taught to be anyway.

But growing up, she had never been taught how to maintain her composure against Mahiru, who happened to be the sole exception to her rules and teachings.

"The night of my wedding gathering?"

"Y-yes."

"W-what about it?"

'_Damn it.'_ Sumireko cursed to herself. _'Keep it together, keep it together.'_

Sumireko had two theories.

One: Either Mahiru's stuttering was a contagious disease that only affected those within five feet of the girl.

Or two: Mahiru had supernatural tongue-tying powers, which rendered Sumireko's will, useless.

But Sumireko was a smart girl. She was fully aware of the reason why Mahiru affected her the way she did.

Mahiru felt herself beginning to clench the tablecloth. She felt the need to say something. She was not going to miss this chance. Because if she averted the subject again, she was sure that she wouldn't have the guts to bring it up in the future by herself.

"I'm sorry."

They words had been so quiet that Sumireko doubted if they had even come from Banba, but she's lived long enough with her to know that it had probably been an unnecessary apology.

It was usually an apology.

"What for?" Sumireko asked, trying to sound confident and unshaken.

"Shinya."

Sumireko lifted her brows in surprise.

"Shinya?"

"S-she..hurt him?" Mahiru complied, nervously playing with her own fingers now.

Sumireko both looked felt dumbstruck and lost.

"Him?"

"Yuu…san." Mahiru mumbled, avoiding eye contact.

Oh.

So that's what she wanted to say.

Was that the only thing that had been bothering her this whole time?

Sumireko felt herself grow pale and stiff with tension. She had gotten her hopes up. She had actually thought that Mahiru was finally going to allow her to talk about the other specific events that had happened that night.

In all honesty, she had even forgotten that her soon-to-be husband practically had every bone is his body broken, due to the fall.

She didn't exactly care enough.

Though Shinya's little _stunt _had cause Sumireko a bit of trouble with both her family and Yuu's, it wasn't anything she couldn't handle. That was still a problem for another day.

"Yuu is fine… Thank you for the concern."

Sumireko lowly scowled at her cup as she said this. Feeling bad as soon as she realized how bitter and tasteless her tone had been. And it wasn't Mahiru's fault, she acknowledged that, but you couldn't blame her for getting her hopes up for a second.

Mahiru's expression saddened, her mouth slightly open now; she finally decided to look at Sumireko.

"H-Hanabusa-san?"

"Hm?" Sumireko replied, never looking up, and still sounding a bit dry.

"Are you…angry with me?"

Quickly darting her eyes up, Sumireko realized her mistake.

She inspected Mahiru closely and noticed how she slumped in her chair now, no longer nervous…but looking rather hurt.

"What?"

Sumireko's voice came out low and gentle this time, her eyes softening at the sight.

"Of course not. Why in the world would I ever be?"

There were moments where Mahiru was dead sure she was bothering Sumireko with her presence.

And this was one of them.

"I'm sorry…I'm just…not used to going out during the night. That time…was the first time, since Shinya left that I went outside, while it was dark…"

Sumireko took a moment to gather her thoughts, and leaned back against her chair, never removing her eyes from Mahiru.

If what Mahiru said was indeed true, that would mean that she probably had stayed locked up somewhere until the sun would rise again.

Not that there was anything wrong with that, because the night is, in fact, meant for sleeping. But still, there were small pleasantries that could only be acquired during a quiet night.

"What would you do before you were asked to return here? During the night, I mean. Did you even look out the window?" Sumireko asked, not sure if she was being inappropriate or not.

Mahiru closed her eyes for a brief moment and shook her head.

"Motel…I would stay at a small motel during the night…and not come out. I was…a little afraid when some men came to where I was staying …and told me I had to come back here. Because without Shinya, I felt …weak."

Sumireko leaned into the table, and rested her head on her arms, intrigued by the subject.

"Why did you return then?" She gently asked, afraid that if she raised the volume of her tone, she would scare Mahiru away. Because right now, Sumireko was taking the direct and subtle approach.

It had always been the safest choice when it came to Mahiru.

At the question, Mahiru jolted upright and her shy, violet eyes met Sumireko's blue ones.

"Because I-" She began to feel warm, once again turning into a soft shade of pink. "I wanted to see you."

"…"

Sumireko's eyes were wide, focused and alert. She quickly leaned back against her chair and blinked, puzzled, letting the words sink in.

Mahiru had said it as if it were a given.

Had she heard that correctly?

I mean, putting that night aside, this was actually news to Sumireko.

Doing her best to ignore her now obvious warmth, glee, and embarrassment, Sumireko began to softly giggle.

"Hanabusa-san?" Mahiru doubtfully inquired. She had not fully recovered from her own words either.

"Banba-san."

Sumireko stood up and walked all the way to where Mahiru sat, and extended a welcoming hand. Her simple smile had broadened into one filled with pleasure and a little anxiety.

"Would you please accompany me for a short while?"

Mahiru, unsure, slowly nodded agreeably.

"Where are we going?" She asked, hesitantly placing her own hand in Sumireko's.

With an anticipating smile, Sumireko tugged the confused and estranged looking girl out of her chair.

"Outside."

Sumireko replied, before she proceeded to quietly guide Mahiru out the room, and into the hallway.

The once lit morning sky had been obliterated by the rapidly falling night, which had transformed into a vast expanse of jet black. It was a completely dark and cold night.

Not a star in sight.

The academy was partly to blame for this. With all the stray lampposts and brightly lit buildings, it was hard to appreciate the beauty the night had to offer.

Especially in this particular night, where a full moon graced the sky with its presence.

But it all seemed rather dull.

Other than the fact that Myōjō was wasting excessive amounts of electricity twenty four seven, the entire town seemed particularly stagnant with the idea that every single household light had to be turned on at the same time.

Even if everything looked dull to a very disappointed Sumireko, Mahiru had a different take on the situation.

To Mahiru, everything looked different.

Familiar things had a weird slant to them now. It was as if the daytime trees, flowers and stones she well knew had gone to bed and sent out a slightly more ominous version of themselves to take their place.

Was this what the night was all about?

A disappointed sound came from Sumireko's throat as she glared at the dark sky. She had not considered that the light pollution might obstruct or interfere with whatever she had in mind.

But her disappointment did not last long.

Her countenance lit up, excited, and she looked at Mahiru.

"This way."

Sumireko brightly beamed, tugging on the sleeve of Mahiru's shirt like an overly enthusiastic child, and moving forward.

But Mahiru's own mood contrasted that of Sumireko's.

Mahiru both looked and felt scared.

She wanted to run back to the safety of her room, and hide under her sheets, where nothing could hurt her. But she didn't resist Sumireko. Redundantly enough, even though she felt terrified with the idea of being outside during the night, having Sumireko next to her brought a type of comfort, or safe feeling she couldn't quite understand.

And after a long and quiet walk, Sumireko had escorted the slightly frightened girl to an unfamiliar building.

Mahiru didn't know where she was, or recognized her surroundings; because the building was located far from the usual routine path she was accustomed to take every morning on her way to class.

And it was dark.

From the looks of things, this particular area on the campus wasn't really used much, or at all.

In the same silence they had walked in, Sumireko urged Mahiru follow her inside.

"S-should we really be here? Is this really ok?" Mahiru asked for about the third time. She flanked Sumireko and tightly held on to the fabric of the back of her shirt.

Without answering, Sumireko smiled and continued to walk forward. Forcing Mahiru to involuntarily follow.

They soon reached a battered looking elevator.

And judging by its horrible condition, once the electric double doors opened, it looked as if it hadn't been used in years.

"It better be." Sumireko finally answered with a small laugh once they were both inside. "Relax a little."

The elevator went up more than eighty stories, before finally stopping at the top floor. And once the doors opened, Sumireko didn't hesitate to hastily walk out in direction of an old wooden door in the distance.

Which proved to be a staircase to the roof.

Up in the roof, it was noticeable that right now they were both standing in the highest point of the academy.

Sumireko had hoped to get a better view of the sky from this location, but was greatly distraught once she noticed that the stars were still barely noticeable. Just small, dim, specks in the sky.

And this frustrated her greatly.

But she was not about to give up.

"Hanabusa-san?"

Mahiru didn't quite understand what was going on. But she understood that Sumireko intended to show her the sky, but she failed see what the big deal was. She didn't know why Sumireko looked so frustrated.

The sky was just dark.

Yes, the stars were a bit more noticeable, but not noticeable enough to leave an impression.

Sumireko grunted and took out her phone from her pocket. Her fingers began to unevenly glide around the screen.

With a contempt grin, she shoved it back into her pocket and smiled at Mahiru.

"Connections can be a wonderful thing." She said, her grin broadening.

She got closer to Mahiru and encircled her arm around the somewhat shaky girls waist, and pulled her close. "Banba-san, please don't be frightened. I'm right here."

Mahiru didn't quite understand what Sumireko meant until her field of vision completely darkened.

Myōjō had entirely shut off.

Not just Myōjō

The entire town was currently experiencing a sudden and _mysterious_ blackout.

Courtesy of the Hanabusa Corporation,ofcourse.

Mahiru shook with anxiety at the sudden darkness and brought her hands up to cover her eyes. Too much darkness was as scary as too much light. Even though she had finally begun to somewhat get over her fears, she was not entirely used to this. She felt frightened and found herself struggling to not cry.

"I'm right here."

She heard Sumireko warmly whispered in her ear, pressing her own body closer to Mahiru's until the cold night became less of a problem.

That's when the fresh smell shampoo hit Mahiru.

Sumireko was close.

Extremely close.

"Banba-san." Sumireko called.

She had swiftly moved behind Mahiru, closely hugging her, and successfully making Mahiru feel safe.

"Look now."

After a little hesitation, Mahiru willingly removed her hands away from her eyes, and blinked against the darkness. She felt Sumireko's warm breath against her neck, causing her body temperature to increase at a rapid pace.

Sumireko smiled to herself when she noticed how Mahiru's corporal temperature had drastically changed.

And soon after her eyes well adjusted to the darkness, Mahiru gasped at the sight before her.

A canopy of luminous stars materialized among the ocean of purple-blackness.

Some were dull, merely flickering into existence every now and again, but there was an adequate amount of shimmering starts to illuminate the dark.

The moon particularly stood out from all of this.

Enormous, elegant, and yellow.

Because there were no traces of light pollution whatsoever, the sight was breathtakingly beautiful.

"See." Sumireko began. "Right now, there's no reason for you to be afraid."

She said, with a tone filled with suppressed joviality and satisfaction as she gently tightened her hold on Mahiru, pressing against her back.

"Shinya may no longer be here to protect you, but rest assured, I am. There's no reason to be afraid."

Sumireko glanced at Mahiru, and saw the graceful sweep of long lashes. Her flush was bright and noticeable on her usually white and porcelain skin.

It was taking almost all of Sumireko's willpower to not press her mouth against Mahiru's soft and parted lips.

Mahiru twisted her head to the side, her eyes meeting blazing blue ones. Sumireko's features looked soft and relaxed, but there was something urgent about them as well.

"Thank you." Mahiru finally whispered, lifting her hand up and cupping Sumireko's cheek, brushing her thumb along her soft features. A shadow of a smile played at her lips.

Her fingers communicated a type of need, a desire.

And as happy as she felt right now, Sumireko felt something a little off about Mahiru. Something odd in Mahiru's usual behavior towards Sumireko.

Something Sumireko had noticed over time was that, on all the rare occasions Mahiru initiated contact between them, it was never her hands what she touched, as most people would usually be accustomed to. It was always either her shoulders, or her back.

That's when she finally understood.

How could she be so blind?

Sumireko's throat felt clamped now, the narrow, hard muscles were constricting her breathing, her speech, everything.

She took a deep breath, and felt herself approach a sentence. Feeling her inner organs being dragged out of her as she put aside thought and just spoke.

"You know..." She finally breathed out, releasing her hold on the girl and instinctively taking a step back.

And for the first time, Mahiru saw something she had never seen in her roommate.

Something she had never thought a strong and confident girl such as Sumireko could experience.

Helplessness.

Sumireko had always been extremely and unnecessarily careful around Mahiru. And as far as she was concerned, the only people who new about her little condition were Azuma, Haru, Nio and somehow, Isuke.

Mahiru looked equally shocked at Sumireko's words, turning to completely face her.

She never took her eyes off Sumireko as she took a step towards her, and grabbed one of Sumireko's hard hands, placing it in her own soft ones.

Sure and confident.

"I do." Mahiru replied, low and steady.

She had intended to sound calm and maybe a little indifferent, as if it didn't exactly matter, but her voice held traces of guilt. Because she knew that she wasn't suppose to know.

And knowing without Sumireko's permission made Mahiru feel as if she had unintentionally betrayed her trust.

Sumireko looked lost.

Lost and afraid, completely unlike her usual self.

"Disgusting, isn't it?" She scoffed out, producing a type of unintentional dry humor. "Right now, you're holding my hand, but I can't feel your warmth. I can only imagine it, and dream of the day I will actually be able to feel it."

Sumireko placed her other hand on top of Mahiru's, completely enclosing it.

"But that day will never come."

Tilting her head a little, Mahiru slightly frowned, completely focusing on what Sumireko was saying. She looked pensive, and a little frustrated.

"Please be honest with me. How does his feel?" Sumireko asked, intertwining their fingers together.

Mahiru looked down at Sumireko's hand, entwined with her own. And unable to think of an answer, she stayed quiet for a short while.

"Cold." She finally replied, never removing her eyes from their hands.

Sumireko humorlessly chuckled, her eyes saddening by the second, and looking extremely downcast. She felt numb inside, and feared what she would actually feel once the numbness subsided.

"I see."

Sumireko smiled, but it obviously didn't reach her eyes.

She closed her eyes and began to feel her heart pound spasmodically, un-allowing her mind to fully register the situation.

Mahiru was momentarily silent, and looked deeper in thought, her brows knitted further.

"There is… more than one way to give and receive warmth." She rasped out, now focusing her eyes on Sumireko.

She tenderly placed a hand on the back of Sumireko's neck.

And Sumireko quietly submitted, to the girls' tense grasp.

Mahiru then lifted herself, and touched her lips to Sumireko's exposed forehead, gently.

Sumireko let out a ragged breath when Mahiru then move down, feeling the sudden heat and moisture of Mahiru's uneven breaths on her neck. Her nose began to trace a line along the length of her neck.

Her touch was tentative, thoughtful and delicate. For once, there were no traces of hesitation, no fear of rejection, in Mahiru's actions.

And to Sumireko, it was as if right now, they had all the time they wanted, or needed. It was as if she too wanted to languish over the act, in case it wasn't real.

Sharply exhaling, Mahiru pulled back and looked at Sumireko.

"H-how..was that?"

Sumireko finally opened her eyes, which looked unfocused and distant.

"…Warm."

She looked down at the girl before her and began to feel overwhelmed with emotion at the raw look in Mahiru's eyes.

"Banba-san really is the bold one here." She laughed, still feeling slightly panicked. Sumireko then felt herself beginning to blush; the sensation burned her cheeks.

This was honestly not the type of reaction she had expected from Mahiru. Not that there was anything wrong with it.

Its just that she had been so worried about it since day one, that it was a little frustrating, yet relieving, to know that it had all been in vain.

"Is it truly okay?" She finally whispered, pressing her forehead against Banba's. "Even if I'm like this?"

The warmth and sweetness of her breath grazed Mahiru, inviting her to indulge in its flavor.

And she accepted.

Without any further hesitating, Mahiru grabbed Sumireko's face and pulled her in, for what Sumireko considered to be a very fierce and urgent kiss. It was filled with anger and passion for the brief second it lasted.

But before Mahiru could pull away Sumireko pressed her body further against that of the white haired girl, deepening the kiss.

When they released their hold on one another, Sumireko stumbled backwards. Causing Mahiru to instinctively wrap her arms around Sumireko's waist. Securely keeping her in place, and preventing her from falling back.

This caught Sumireko off-guard.

Mahiru's arms were strong, confident and unwavering.

"Why should it bother me?" Mahiru complained, and the tone had taken Sumireko by surprise.

"S-sorry."

The fact that Sumireko had kept her prosthetics a secret from her because she thought it would _'bother'_ her actually '_bothered' _Mahiru.

Sumireko glanced at her, taking this moment to just look at her. Her usually neat white hair was slightly messy, and her eyes looked bright, and a little wild.

And she considered the way Mahiru actually looked, agitated at her for once, to be adorably endearing, and refreshing.

Mahiru's voice brought Sumireko back.

"I have always wanted to hold you." Her voice was low, and her eyes were attentive, locking Sumireko's in place. "To kiss you…to make you…happy. Just being with you everyday used to be enough for me…but now it's…it's killing me.

"Sometimes…I stay up at night..wondering if I'll ever be good enough. Your world seems so far away from mine. I could never catch up.."

Sumireko's eyes softened at her words, and she brought Mahiru in for a warm embrace.

"You are more than enough." She confirmed, closing her eyes and smiling. "Can't you see?" She picked up Mahiru's hand, which rested on her waist, and brought it up all the way up. Neatly placing it on top of her chest.

Mahiru's eyes widened.

Sumireko's heart was racing, unevenly thumbing in a disoriented rhythm under Mahiru's hand.

"I love you." Sumireko whispered. "And you are, and always will be, the only person who will hold my heart like this. You are the only person who can bring me true happiness."

Lifting her hand off, Mahiru brought it all the way up to Sumireko's face, cupping her cheek once more.

She looked entirely confused and desperate.

She didn't have to say anything for Sumireko to understand that Mahiru doubted her words, because it was written all over her face.

Even though Mahiru knew very well that Sumireko was not the type of person to lie, especially about these types of things, she couldn't help but question her words.

Because she couldn't understand how in the world someone like Sumireko could take interest, much less love, someone as useless as herself.

Sumireko warmly smiled, tilting her head and kissing Mahiru's palm.

"You will always be the one for me."

Being too afraid to say anything, Mahiru acted on impulse and let her lips find their way back to Sumireko's. This time around the kiss was gentle and sweet, filled with emotion.

At that moment Sumireko felt as if something inside her had burst, and all the emotions she had been accumulating over time finally found their way out.

"Mahiru." She breathlessly gasped. Running her fingers, tangling and untangling, what she assumed to be, soft strands. "I love you."

At that moment, all the want and need Mahiru had been suppressing began to take a toll.

Mahiru smiled within their kiss, and to Sumireko, it felt like a sun's ray. And she wanted to stand there a little longer, basking in the warmth of it.

It was clear as day, that to Mahiru, Sumireko being the way she was was no problem at all.

"Wait."

Sumireko pulled back and shot a look to a slightly disappointed Mahiru.

"How did you figure it out in the first place?"

"Shinya told me…"

"…Ofcourse.."

Back in their room both Mahiru and Sumireko were quietly sitting in their living room couch.

Originally, once they had arrived, they had simply sat at an extremely close proximity, acknowledging each other's presence, and individually reviewed what had happened.

But one way another, Mahiru ended up sitting between Sumireko's legs, comfortably leaning her head back, and resting it between Sumireko's neck and shoulder.

Sumireko held Mahiru, and every now and again breathing in the other girls scent. Making sure that this was, in fact, reality.

And it was.

"What are you thinking about?" Sumireko asked, in a low almost monotone voice.

"Inukai-san." Mahiru replied in the same tired, but contempt tone.

Sumireko pulled back to get a better look at the other girls face.

"You're thinking about somebody else, while you're snuggling with me?" She asked, raising a thin brow, perplexed.

And with that remark, childish and lame even to her own ears, Sumireko felt a bit embarrassed with herself for a split second.

I mean, thinking about somebody else is bad enough.

But out of all people, it had to be Isuke?

Still, it was somewhat amusing how panicked Mahiru suddenly looked.

"N-n-n-o, it's not like that!" Mahiru exclaimed, turning around, until she was completely facing Sumireko.

Giving the sudden position they were now in, Sumireko couldn't help but blush a bit at how oblivious and sly Mahiru could sometimes be.

Especially oblivious.

Very oblivious.

"I was just thinking how she must feel, being in her room all alone...now that Sagae-san isn't around."

Mahiru's eyes fell, expressing genuine sadness.

A helpless sigh escaped Sumireko's lips and she gently moved Mahiru's bangs away from her face, getting a better look at the shy and reserved eyes she loved so much.

Which looked more open now.

"The concept of what Sagae-san did, is not exactly flattering. But she must have had her reasons for doing what she did, wouldn't you agree?"

Mahiru nodded in response.

"I can't help but feel bad for her..." She quietly uttered. "Inukai-san..she had encouraged me once."

Mahiru looked up, meeting Sumireko's soft gaze.

"If it hadn't been for her, I wouldn't have attended you wedding party back then."

Sumireko blinked, feeling slightly taken aback.

Inukai?

She had actually _'encouraged'_ Mahiru in some inexplicable way?

The idea alone seemed preposterous enough, truthfully.

Well.

Not entirely.

That very night, it had been both Sagae and Inukai who had assisted in '_distracting' _the guards.

If it hadn't been for them...well, who knows how things might have turned out.

Sumireko sighed.

"Mahiru...can I trust you to take care of yourself?"

Mahiru looked confused and unsure of Sumireko's random request.

"Don't misunderstand, I'm not doing this for Inukai-san. I owe Sagae-san a favor is all." Sumireko explained, reaching for her phone and once again texting with one hand.

The other stayed neatly wrapped around Mahiru.

Understanding, Mahiru's expression lit up in relief and satisfaction.

"Hanabusa-san.." She said, brightly smiling.

Sumireko's eyes violently darted to Mahiru, and an unfamiliar malicious glow, which Mahiru did not completely understand, emerged.

"Ma-hi-ru." Sumireko sang, bluntly dropping her phone and using both hands to pull the girl closer.

Finally acknowledging the questionable position they were in, Mahiru began to blush, bright red.

"Y-y-yes?" She stuttered, leaning back, and looking for an escape.

She always felt safe with Sumireko; there was no doubt about it.

But right now.

Her sanity was being tested.

By the same person she was suppose to feel at ease with.

Smirking, Sumireko locked her prosthetics in place, un-allowing Mahiru a chance to escape.

Noticing this, Mahiru placed her hands on the strong, solid arms and anxiously laughed.

For some reason, she felt like a sheep in the presence of a hungry wolf.

Sumireko closed her eyes and tilted her head, still giving off a _'dangerous' _aura.

"What's my name?"

Mahiru felt a cold sweat drop from the back of her neck and gave out a nervous laugh.

"H-Hanabusa..san?"

Sumireko narrowed her eyes, and pouted a bit.

"Wrong." She stated. "Try again."

"H-H-Hanabusa...s-"

Sumireko gave Mahiru a brief squeeze, cutting her off."

"Wrong again." She repeated, beginning to lean in. "Try again." She commanded, with a devilish smile.

For some reason, she was enjoying this a little too much. And after mentally apologizing to Mahiru, she opted to continue.

"H-Hanabusa?"

Mahiru was brightly blushing due to embarrassment, and Sumireko's closeness.

A small grunt came out of Sumireko's throat, and she disapprovingly furrowed her brows.

Mahiru swallowed.

She new what Sumireko's game was right now. And for some reason, she was having a hard time playing along.

She had never had any close relationships. In the past, the thought of ever being this close to someone was practically taboo to Mahiru.

Much less calling someone by name...

With a deep breath, Mahiru tightly shut her eyes.

"S-Su-"

Sumireko's eyes lit up with glee and she warmly smiled.

"Yes?"

"S-S-Sumi-"

Sumireko then leaned in, closer than she already had been, teasing Mahiru by letting her lips graze her neck.

"Almost." She whispered.

In response, Mahiru shivered and placed her hands on her vicious roommates shoulders, trying to push her back.

Her heart was not ready for this.

Yet she had been so bold earlier..

If only Shinya...

"No." Sumireko complained, closing her eyes, knowing very well were Mahiru's train of thought was going at the moment.

She wasn't going to let her run away from this.

"But-" Mahiru breathed out.

"No." Sumireko mumbled. "Not this time."

Swallowing once again, Mahiru looked down and pushed Sumireko back a bit, letting their eyes meet.

"I.."

Sumireko lifted her head a little, and brushed her nose against her roommate, who looked as if she was about to faint.

"Please." She whispered, cupping Mahiru's neck. Her eyes looked desperate and moist. And after what seemed to be a minute, Mahiru exaggeratedly inhaled and in one swift movement clasped Sumireko's face between her hands.

"Sumireko!"

Mahiru loudly called, unintentionally pinching Sumireko's cheeks in the process.

Looking a bit startled, Sumireko blinked, and began to uncontrollably laugh, hugging Mahiru a little tighter.

"That's right." She gasped between her laughing fit. "You got it!"

Pouting Mahiru turned her head away.

"You're..a bit of a bully."

But Sumireko was too busy laughing to properly reply.

She was happy.

The girl she loved finally acknowledged her, and accepted her faults.

She felt as if there had been a major development between them.

Mahiru was still a little bashful, but it seemed different.

It felt more open now.

More playful.

And the same went for Sumireko.

She didn't know she was actually capable of doing what she just did. She had never dreamed of it. But right now, she felt way too comfortable with Mahiru to care anymore.

They loved eachother.

Maybe that's why Sumireko had been acting like an idiotic child just now.

And maybe that's why Mahiru had not felt the slightest bit bothered by it.

They were both experiencing complete bliss at the moment, and nothing could cause them to think otherwise-

The loud sound of crashing glass came from the bathroom, completely startling both of them.

"What was that?" Mahiru asked, craning her head to the side, and trying to get a better view.

The mirror…

"N-nothing.." Sumireko stuttered. "Um- You had said that my prosthetics didn't bother you at all, right?"

Mahiru looked confused, but nodded.

"Good. Just…making sure we were still on the same page."

That night, they slept in the same bed.

Because Mahiru promised Sumireko that she would always give her warmth.

After Sumireko promised to get a new mirror.

The following day came just like any other, and everybody had already made it to class. All but Sumireko, whose enormous, attention-grabbing desk, sat empty.

As always, Sensei was the last to arrive. And when he did, it had been all but explosive.

"Everyone!" He yelled from the hallway, slamming the door open. He was frantically panting, and held a few crumpled papers in hand.

"Han-"

He wheezed.

"Hana-"

"Sensei?" Haru called, looking concerned for her breathless teacher.

"Hanabusa-san is taking a short leave?!" He practically yelled, waving what appeared to be, Sumireko's crumpled documents, in his hand.

Mizorogi looked as if he was about to cry.

Instinctively, all eyes fell on Haru, who anxiously laughed at the stares.

Then to Nio, who simply shrugged, feeling as confused as everybody else looked.

But Isuke's eyes, hinting actual concern, fell on Mahiru, who quietly sat in her chair. Unstartled by the news.

"Guys…isn't this getting a little old? Suzu sighed, rubbing her temples in impatience and exhaustion.

"No pun intended?" Nio happily remarked from her chair.

Isuke, for once, disapprovingly glared at Nio.

"W-what?"

Tokaku audibly sighed from her desk, she was begging to grow tired of this as well.

Mizorogi then took a moment to get himself together, and directed his attention to Banba, who seemed a little distracted. Even with the small commotion that was going on.

"Banba-san...do you know anything?"

Mahiru snapped out of whatever trance she was in and looked around.

All eyes were on her, thirsty for an answer.

"...She'll be back." Mahiru softly confirmed.

"That's all you have to say?" Shiena complained. "Well, whatever." She mumbled, turning her attention back to some papers she had on her desk. From the looks of things, Shiena still wasn't completely over her first experience in Myōjō

"She'll be back." Mahiru repeated, this time a little louder.

Isuke a scoffed from her desk, resting her head on one of her hands, and examined her nails.

"Let's hope you're right."

Putting aside new problems, Haru couldn't help but smile.

Atleast Isuke's sarcasm seemed to be back.

**Authors Note: Eh, what can I say? College finals. I had been particularly busy lately and kinda kept postponing this. Sorry guys. And this may not be much (because I wrote it last minute) but it's something, and actually very crucial ****for future reference. As many have pointed out, I'm a huge fan of foreshadowing and random development.**

"**If you have time to post shit on tumblr, you have time to update your goddamn story!" **

–**Random Anon.**

**That's when it hit me, Anon-san had a point. So I began to write…and ended up writing chapters 16-17 instead.. Whoops.**

**Huh, it seems as if Sumireko and Mahiru have had a faster development than our main idiots. But that's just because so many of you asked of this, so here ya go.**

**For the impatient 'Where is Haruki? Give me my Pocky Baby back!' ones: If you really want to know, let me know and I'll let you which chapter she'll be back in. That way, nobody loses his or her sanity and we're all happy.**

**It's extremely late, and I'll fix the many errors in the morning.**

**Happy reading~**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Even though the chill inducing cold weather and murky skies foreshadowed the slow coming, of what appeared to be, a long period of sunless skies.

Inside Myōjō's botanical garden, it felt like spring.

It was easy to forget the time, or even the changing seasons here. Everything seemed to always be booming with life, color and fragrance.

And the diligently monitored, and carefully cared for flowers, shone brighter than they should, inside the immense temperature controlled glass bubble.

This is where Mizorogi-sensei concluded that today's lecture would be held.

He had intended to show the subtle signs of hibernation, most insects and birds displayed during this time of the year, but it had all been in vein.

With the temperature always being so perfect and welcoming, the small creatures seemed to have forgotten their usual nature duties, and carried on, unaltered and unaffected by the coming of the cold.

"Everyone!" Mizorogi called, gaining the reluctant attention of his _pupils_. "Looks like todays lesson will be cut short due to the circumstances."

The Black Class students stood in their usual bunch, awaiting further instructions. Most of them no longer attempted to mask their obviously bored expressions.

"What a shame." Otoya sarcastically remarked, closing her eyes and lightly shrugging.

"Instead." Mizorogi both happy and unaffected, began rummaging through a black folder he had brought along, removing a stack of papers. "I want all of you to do a self-study, and evaluate the correlation between the artificially induced temperature and the plants. I also want you to point out any signs of weird animal behavior you may notice. Feel free to discuss your findings with one another!"

Mizorogi then proceeded to hand Kouko a few papers, which already had the instructions he had currently given written down.

Maybe he had already been prepared, just in case his original lesson plans didn't follow through.

"Can I trust you to hand these around, _Class Rep._?" Mizorogi asked, already expecting the diligent and well-mannered Kouko to agree, as always.

He had grown particularly fond of her, simply because thanks to her, he was able to function with more ease. Even if the girl continued being her cold-shark self towards him.

As if on cue, Suzu un-hesitantly stepped forward and took a few pieces of paper from her serious roommates hand.

"Let me help you with those." She insisted.

Kouko, already used to Suzu's manner of functioning, which was doing things whatever way she deemed fit at the moment, indifferently agreed.

"Guess you won't be getting that free time you wanted after all." Suzu teasingly whispered. And handed a dejected looking Otoya, the assignment paper.

Otoya sighed and her features dropped. She crumpled the paper with an unnecessarily strong grip. "No fair…Ah- wait! Shiena-chan! Let's group up!"

Overhearing, and taking her classmates idea into consideration, Haru lightly tugged on Tokaku's sleeve, drawing the somewhat distracted looking girls attention. "Shall we go as well, Tokaku-san?"

Letting out a small attentive hum, Tokaku carefully examined their assignment sheet, and shrugged.

It wasn't like any of this _school-play_ stuff mattered to her, but right now, it seemed as a far better option than doing nothing.

Nio sheepishly laughed, and scratched the back of her head, observing the way all of her classmates naturally formed their usual pair of two.

"Guess everybody is pairing up." She remarked, despondently dropping her eyes to the floor.

'_As usual.'_ She thought to herself. _'Guess I'm stuck with that guy again.'_

Almost instinctively, she turned away from her classmates, in an attempt to locate Mizorogi-sensei. Her usual partner in crime when it came to class assignments.

"Nio-san!" Haru's voice echoed. "Aren't you coming?"

Blinking twice, and thinking her ears had deceived her for a moment, Nio turned around and incredulously pointed at herself.

Haru, being her usual bubbly self, would obviously have little to no problem with Nio being an extra to her usual army of two. But on the other hand, Azuma was usually another story..

Nio's eyes quickly flickered to where Tokaku stood, casually next to Haru.

Rather than giving an articulated answer, Tokaku turned her head, facing away from Nio's currently anxious and impatient eyes, and slowly nodded. This was followed by a brief sigh; signaling that it was fine.

Haru approvingly smiled at her roommates answer, and extended a welcoming, and always optimistic hand in Nio's direction. "Lets go!"

And for the first time, in what seemed like an eternity, Nio genuinely felt welcomed.

She had always made light of the matter, or pretended not to care about her distant relationship with those around her.

But for some reason, this time, it mattered to her, just a bit.

Not too far from where these events had unfolded, Hitsugi stood and watched the somewhat questionable and unusual exchange between her classmates. A small smile made its way into her face, and she released a short laugh, her small frame shaking in amusement.

"Well, wasn't that heartwarming?" She managed between giggles.

"Hm? What was that? Did you say anything, Kirigaya?" Chitaru asked, looking down from the paper, which held Mizorogis instructions for the assignment.

"Nothing, Chitaru-san." Hitsugi reassured. She then hesitated a bit before taking Chitaru's hand into her own.

Quickly, and dismissing her obvious hesitation, Hitsugi tugged Chitaru in direction to a particular and unusual blooming rosebush. Mizorogi had mentioned that they would get better results with their assignment if they observed flowers that weren't suppose to be blooming during this time of the year.

Chitaru felt herself beginning to grow worried when she finally noticed something peculiar about the small girl.

Hitsugi's hand, the one that was not already occupied with hers, was empty.

"Kirigaya…"

Without answering, Hitsugi looked up, her eyes glowing at the sound of her name coming from, a now healthier, Chitaru-san.

Chitaru warmly smiled and waved a dismissive hand.

"Nothing. It's nothing."

Ever since what had happened the day of the play, Chitaru noticed how Kirigaya would no longer carried her stuffed bear around with her. Not as much as she used to anyway.

Everybody now seemed to go about their own business, sometimes even exchanging brief words of conversation.

Thankfully, the atmosphere seemed less tense than it used to be. But without either Haruki, or Sumireko around, there was a lingering empty feeling in the air.

Isuke audibly sighed and crossed her arms. She was beginning to feel her inexistent patience finally reach its limits.

"Can I help you with something?" She interrogated, for about the third time now. Her annoyance was more than visible in both her tone and posture.

From the moment the class had reached the garden, up until now, a shadow, had wordlessly followed her every step.

"I'm asking, what exactly do you think you're doing?" Isuke pressed on, firmly turning her attention to the small and somewhat unsure person before her.

It was Mahiru.

Mahiru had diligently stuck to Isuke like glue, always keeping a formidable, and impressive, calculated distance of three feet between them. And no longer displaying the same amount of hesitation in her replies, Mahiru decided to finally answer.

She had attempted to make direct eye contact with Isuke, but barely succeeded.

"I…I was asked to make sure you didn't do anything-" Mahiru paused, making sure she could manage the correct words. "-stupid."

Sumireko had asked her to be brave while she was away, and Mahiru was more than willing to oblige to the understandable request.

Isuke replied to Mahiru's response with a short and annoyed kind of grunting noise.

For some reason, Isuke was sure that, other than Haruki, Mahiru was probably the only other person whose presence she could tolerate in the entire academy.

Though Shinya.

To Isuke, Shinya was another story.

But still, that didn't give them the tittle of _'friends'_, 'acquaintance', or anything else along those lines. It just meant that Isuke hated Mahiru a little less is all. Which was an entirely redundant feeling all by itself, because Isuke couldn't quite tolerate Mahiru's counterpart, Sumireko, at all.

"Did your puppet-master set you up for this?" Isuke impatiently asked, furrowing her brows.

She closed her eyes and sighed when Mahiru stared back, rather than responding.

Rubbing her temples she mentally cursed the form of torture Hanabusa had knowingly imposed on her.

"How annoying. Isuke doesn't need a babysitter, you know."

And what does she mean by _'not doing anything stupid'_?

'_Who does Hanabusa exactly think she is?'_

Mahiru continued to stare up to the taller girl.

All of this felt strange to Mahiru.

Other than having to interact with Isuke, which she had considered a strange and impossible notion ever since she met the pink haired girl, she also had to crane her head up, to get a better look at Isuke. She was used to only having to engage in conversation with Sumireko, who was usually within her own eye level.

And the thought of Sumireko being somewhere else, and not here, turned Mahiru's stomach with a familiar discomfort.

In that split second, Isuke noticed Mahiru's lower lips quiver in a type of sadness or dissatisfaction.

And Isuke perfectly understood, that Mahiru didn't exactly want to be standing next to her right now. She would much rather be standing alongside somebody else.

Isuke could relate.

"I know." Mahiru practically whispered in response, now dropping her eyes to look at her feet.

"Then why do you insist on following me? Isuke is more than capable of taking care of herself." Isuke scoffed.

"The room feels empty. It's lonely"

Oh.

Isuke's eyes widened in surprise and her facial features softened; her rigid posture relaxed, and she let her arms fall back to her side.

Without Sumireko around, Mahiru felt just as lonely as Isuke did without Haruki.

Isuke could understand that much.

Sighing, Isuke twisted a soft pink curl around her finger, feeling the need for a distraction.

"Fine. If you're going to continue this little game, you're not allowed to mope in Isuke's presence. Do you understand?"

Mahiru shakily nodded.

Isuke concluded that there was no use in trying to console Mahiru anyway.

Not that she would try.

"Where-" Isuke tried, now frowning and looking at the ground. She was beginning to feel herself grow tongue tied as the words burned their way out. "Where _did_ Hanabusa go?" She asked, trying not to meet Mahiru's inspecting and reserved eyes.

Mahiru remained silent, and looked away.

Sumireko had not given her any further instructions, or mentioned whether it was okay to say anything or not.

But Mahiru was a smart girl.

She knew that if she said anything, she would be crossing some sort of un-established line.

After a shared brief silence, Isuke realized that supposing Banba knew Hanabusa's whereabouts, she didn't seem willing to say anything about it.

Uncomfortably clearing her throat, Isuke mentally scolded herself for even asking what she now considered to be, a ridiculous question from her part.

Isuke didn't want to give Mahiru the wrong idea, and make it seem as if she cared for Hanabusa or anything. And Finally waving an apparent indifferent hand, Isuke ended whatever kind of conversation they were having.

"Well, whatever."

Mahiru finally spoke after noticing how Isuke targeted the exit with her eyes, and proceeded to make her way out.

"Where are you going?"

"Isuke doesn't feel like playing school today." Isuke replied, never looking back.

"B-but..skipping is bad." Mahiru said, just a little louder this time.

Isuke stopped in her tracks and smirked, letting out a soft, low chuckle.

She whipped around and took a few steps towards Mahiru, completely facing her. She then lifted a long slender finger, as if to emphasize whatever justification she was going to make.

"What is either good or bad for Isuke, is for Isuke to determine herself." She proudly huffed, placing a firm hand on her waist. "Understand?" She finished, sardonically leaning forward, and causing Mahiru to recoil back a little in response.

Not from either fear or discomfort, but one way or another, from admiration.

Isuke turned around, and once again began to stalk her way to the exit. Causing Mahiru to stumble forward, trying to catch up to Isuke's, once again, retreating figure.

Which proved to be a little more complicated that it should have been, due to the significant difference in the length of their legs.

Not too far behind from the scene, Otoya grinned. She had been eavesdropping.

"Would you look at that? A master without her dog, and a dog without her master. Isn't it weird how they conveniently compliment one another right now?"

"What are you saying?" Shiena complained, never looking up from whatever she was writing on the assignment sheet. Apparently she intended to actually take the assignment seriously.

She was always blunt when displaying her short-tempered attitude towards Otoya.

"Nothing really." Otoya hummed in response. "Hey, do you think- Sorry!"

Otoya had been mindlessly following Shiena, without paying much attention to where they were going. So she hadn't noticed when the Shiena had abruptly stopped to take a few extra observation notes, causing Otoya to accidentally bump into the unsuspecting girl.

"Hey, watch it!" Shiena angrily refuted, sending Otoya a death glare.

She felt a sense of exasperation at the fact that her pens ink had been smeared all over the paper.

Whether it had been intentional or not, Shiena was already tired of Otoya's constant, insolent behavior.

Otoya cringed at the sharpness of Shiena's tone, and dropped her eyes, looking guilty.

"Sorry, Shiena-chan…" She apologized, easing her already neat skirt. An obvious nervous habit, she had eventually developed.

Shiena sighed, clearly vexed.

"I'm not in the mood for this today."

"Shiena…" Otoya quietly uttered, carefully eying her roommate, her brows knitting in apologetic concern.

Shifting in discomfort at the sudden attentive gaze, and usually hard to read eyes, Shiena turned around, completely giving Otoya her back.

"I'm going back to the room."

Otoya fiddled with her fingers.

"Would it be okay-" She knitted her brows further, looking crestfallen. "Would it be okay if I tagged along?"

Stopping in her tracks, Shiena looked over her shoulder, only to accusingly scowl.

"You can do whatever you want. It doesn't really concern me." Shiena conceitedly replied.

And following Isuke's lead, both Otoya and Shiena were out the door.

Not a verbal word was exchanged between them as they trenched down a quiet, almost secluded path, which they were not exactly sure to where it would lead.

Only occasional glances of discomfort.

Mostly from Shiena's part.

Shiena had never been good with directions, and since she was more of an inside person, rather than an outside type, she never took the time to explore the immense Myōjō campus.

And since Otoya astutely hung around Shiena most of the time, this also meant that her knowledge of the surrounding area was just as limited.

This being said-

Both of them were wholly lost.

And there wasn't a soul in sight, which they could ask for directions.

"Where are we?" Shiena cautiously asked, carefully monitoring her surroundings, to which Otoya replied with a casual friendly shrug.

A sense of alarm and urgency began to creep its way up to Shiena's chest.

She did room with Otoya, and spent most of her time in the company of her silence, or inappropriate remarks.

But never had they been as alone, and secluded, as they were at this very moment…

At least, it never felt that way.

An uninvited, chill-inducing wind grabbed hold of their legs, sending unpleasant shivers down Shiena's spine.

"Here."

Shiena jolted upright at the sound of Otoya's uncharacteristically calm and somewhat soothing voice. Only daring to glance at the girl, unsure of what was to come.

The first things that grabbed hold of her sight, was the distinct dull color of grey.

Otoya deliberately held out her grey scarf. She motioned it forward in Shiena's direction, never meeting her eyes.

Being extremely bothered and susceptible to the cold, ever since the season began to turn, Otoya industriously carried a scarf around.

"Don't feel obligated to wear it. I just thought that you might be cold."

Shiena incredulously eyed the fabric, before timidly taking the offered scarf into her hands. She tightly grasped the soft, warm fabric, between her fingers.

"T-thanks.." She murmured, still feeling somewhat baffled. Her breath had come out in a cold puff.

She felt unsure about the genuine hospitality behind Otoya's unexpected gesture.

Takechi really was a weird one.

Shiena felt a little reluctant to wrap the scarf around her neck, but another random wisp of cold air decided to smack the heat out of her, finally convincing her to do so.

Otoya despondently smiled, and shifted her weight from one foot to another.

Her eyes awkwardly shuffled to her feet.

"…What?"

Shiena wondered if the girl was expecting something other than a 'Thank You'. But she had not asked for this random and unforeseen act of kindness, or charity from Otoya's part.

She didn't need any charity.

"We should try retracing our steps. No point in getting further lost." Shiena uneasily suggested, narrowing her eyes, and trying to see if she could manage to locate a random student or faculty member for help.

She looked at Otoya, to confirm whether the girl was okay with her practical suggestion. And noticed that the emotion she had originally regarded to be ease, at first glance earlier, had slid of Otoya's features and was now replaced with something else.

Otoya looked solemn.

And her expression triggered a random train of thought in Shiena.

It was something she had not considered for a while.

Something she had actually forgotten about.

That day in the hallway, by the elevator.

They had never really talked about what had happened back then. And Shiena could perfectly tell that Otoya wanted to divulge in the subject at least one more time.

That time being now.

Otoya didn't need to voice this desire, because Shiena could tell just by taking the girls actions into consideration.

Which was something she found herself doing a lot more of lately.

Whenever Otoya was visibly stoical, it usually meant that there was something she wanted to talk about. But she just didn't know how to approach the subject, without being her usual tactless self.

And this would also happen with the simplest of things.

Like one time, Otoya wanted to know where Shiena had placed the remote control, for the small television their room offered, but found herself unable to bring up the question.

She had been afraid of bothering her busy looking companion.

So instead, she began to casually and relentlessly hover around Shiena, holding the channel guide in one hand and wearing a small distant smile.

This was the way Otoya knew how to properly communicate best.

And as much as Shiena hated to admit it to herself.

It was kind of adorable…

The way Otoya was so careful and considerate around her now. Shiena had noticed this change of behavior soon after their little 'confrontation' that day.

"Haru-chan." Otoya carefully began, finally lifting her eyes to meet Shiena's. "Had mentioned that you really like the theater. Can I ask why?"

Shiena couldn't help but blink back at her words, and let out a small unintentional chuckled.

Where had that come from?

'_Was this really what had been on her mind?'_

Still, Takechi Otoya seemed allusively earnest right now. As if she really cared for the answer.

"In a play…" Shiena finally began, looking a bit melancholic. "You can play whoever you want. Pretend to be somebody else..even if its just for a second. You can go to places you've only dreamed of. I…guess it has always served me as a type of escape, you know?"

Otoya jubilantly laughed.

And Shiena wondered if she had said too much.

Too much to a person she didn't even like or tolerate…

"You're surprisingly honest, Shiena-chan."

"S-shut up."

Shiena began readjusting the scarf. She was not used to wearing this type of itchy material Otoya seemed extremely fond of. So in a sense the way it scratched against her neck, felt a little uncomfortable.

Otoya's small giggles had yet to subside, and Shiena was now regretting the moment she answered the question.

She wondered what had gone over her.

Noticing how the tension had begun to leave Shiena's face, and how her body language had become less rigid, Otoyas eyes softened with a sincerity that just didn't fit her personality.

And with one elegant action, she extended her hands forward, and readjusted the scarf, so that the material would bother her roommate less.

Her fingers scraped the bottom of Shiena's neck in the process. Causing the girl to shiver.

"You've been through some rough patches huh, Shiena-can?" Otoya casually mentioned, holding her hands in place.

"W-well, I guess…you could say that..."

Otoya smiled a fanciful smile. It was filled with wonder, warmth and understanding.

For a moment, entranced, Shiena couldn't help but smile back.

When she realized how her expression contradicted her feelings towards the person before her, Shiena spun around and cursed herself under her breath.

Pushing Otoya's helpful hands away in the process.

She didn't want to encourage Otoya.

Takechi was annoying and aggressive enough without Shiena smiling at her.

A small, simultaneously exasperated and affectionate laugh escaped Otoya's lips.

"You don't have to be so careful around me, you know."

Otoya expressively opened her arms in a thankful gesture.

"You got me put of that rotting pit of a prison. And I will forever be grateful." She explained between giggles.

Her unwavering eye contact and easy laugh brought Shiena a type of comfort and ease she really did not desire.

Or deserve.

This was something different and altogether unnerving.

Shiena indignantly sighed, and crossed her arms.

"I didn't do anything."

"So she says." Otoya knowingly sang.

Shiena was sure she would regret whatever she was about to say,

She turned to face Otoya.

"Look." She blatantly began, frowning. "I'm sorry about the other day, back at the elevator. I may have…crossed the line with what I said."

As a child, Shiena's small frame was no defense against others. So she developed her harsh, but insecure character as a means of protection.

Otoya waved her arms and jerkily shook her head.

"No. You didn't. Shiena-chan was simply saying what was on her mind, which is not too far from the truth." She finished with another small laugh.

Shiena shot her a skeptical look.

"Meaning?"

"I'm crazy." Otoya openly pointed at herself. "I take joy in questionable things. Things others wouldn't agree with." Her eyes grew hard and serious. "But rest-assured, I would never deliberately do anything to harm you. No matter how soft, white, fragrant…smooth.."

"Takechi!"

"Oh, right. Sorry sorry." Otoya laughed, scratching the back of her neck. "No matter how appealing you are."

Shiena raised her brows, uncertain.

"Promise?" She asked, and Otoya replied, with a happy nod.

Then it hit her.

She was making a promise…

No.

She was making a deal to reassure her safety, with a psychopath.

Otoya enthusiastically raised her pinky, looking extremely content with the current situation.

"Promise!"

More out of compassion than anything, Shiena brought her own pinky up and intertwined it with Otoya's, closing the _deal_.

"Great!" Otoya cheerfully exclaimed.

Taking advantage of the current physical contact, she tugged on Shiena's pinky, and pulled her closer.

They were suddenly at an extremely close proximity.

A proximity, Shiena would have never willingly allowed, or instigate.

And right now, she couldn't help but take an indulging moment to really look at Otoya.

Smiling even brighter than she already was, Otoya smoothly clasped Shiena's already vulnerable hand, dragging her forward.

"Anyways, the way to the dorms is this way!"

Shiena's mouth slightly opened in surprise, and she frowned, tugging back at her own hand and forcing Otoya to stop walking.

"Wait, you knew the way?"

Otoya innocently tilted her head.

"Ofcourse I did."

"Why didn't you say anything earlier then?"

Bringing a single finger up to her chin, Otoya hummed, and closed her eyes.

She appeared to be in deep, genuine thought, before finally opening her eyes and smiling even brighter than before.

"I wanted to be alone with you like this a little longer."

Shiena's eyes widened at the response, and she looked away, clearly surprised by the uncalled for answer.

For the first time in what she considered to be forever, she began to feel her body grow warm.

"You're blushing!" Otoya pointed out.

"A-am not!" Shiena countered, completely pulling her hand out of her roommates hold. "Lets just go."

"Wait! Wrong way, Shiena-chan!"

It was moments like this, where Shiena realized that, Takechi Otoya…was her guilty pleasure.

Now drawn, pale, and stiff with tension at the realization, Shiena contemplated on whether she should make a run for it.

Not because she was afraid of being physically harmed by Otoya, but because the realization itself was all too much for her to handle.

Bluntly ignoring Otoya's persistent calls, Shiena kept her eyes fixed ahead, quickening her pace.

She could feel the cold penetrating eyes that followed her every move, not too far behind.

Shiena came to the comclusion that:

Whatever this now was…

'_Friendship or whatever.'_

Was dysfunctional on so many levels.

The day carried on as per usual, and like every other day was supposed to end, night fell.

And the nights were now even colder than the mornings.

Tonight, Suzu found herself completely and utterly bored as she waited for her roommate to finish her bath.

She rested on the couch, and was just about finished with her usual night stretches, a few bones cracking in the process.

'_Oh my.'_

This sound usually signaled the end to her night routine.

With a small thump, she sat-up on the couch and began to look around the room.

It's not like she had anything better to do outside of Myōjō, but she wondered how much longer they would have to stay here until someone finally cracked due to the lack of freedom.

'_Though being a student once again is nice. Pretty carefree.'_

Her eyes finally landed on a pile of papers, which sat neatly organized on the desk Kouko usually worked in.

She narrowed them, and lifted a curious brow, considering whether or not she should take a better form of inspection.

Suzu respected her roommates' privacy, so she never pried or tried to look at whatever it was Kouko restlessly worked on night, after night, after night.

But being as old as she was.

Sometimes boredom got the better of her.

She quickly looked over her shoulder, and closed her eyes, listening.

The sound of running water, which came from the bathroom, was still audible. Meaning that her companion was still in the midst of her shower.

'_I really do wonder if she'll ever use those soaps.' _Suzu thought, smiling and opening her eyes.

She bounced out off the couch and quietly stalked her way to the desk. And letting her now selfish hands wonder, she shuffled around the organized pages, taking a moment to admire Kouko's neat handwriting.

She wasn't really paying attention to the contents, Suzu simply skimmed.

The same way a child who has yet to learn how to read would skim through a storybook.

'_This all seems pretty boring. Though these maps look really nice. Who knew you had such a talent, Kouko-chan.'_

"Don't touch those!"

Startled, Suzu's eyes widened, and she dropped the papers, along with their content back on the desk. Swiftly turning around, her eyes bewildered at the sight of a still wet, and extremely angry-looking, _Kouko-chan_.

The corners of Suzu's lips twitched upwards in panic, and she forced a casual smile along with a laugh.

She had been caught.

"Kouko-chan, I didn't hear you come in."

But in the end, this all felt like a type of game to her. At this point, any situation was a good distraction, or decent entertainment at the very least.

"Maybe because you were going around things that clearly don't belong to you." Kouko defiantly said, crossing her arms around her chest.

The universal symbol of personal closure.

"In my defense, you shouldn't leave important things laying around." Suzu teased in a light tone.

In response, Kouko continued to stare, unmoving. Her eyes were hard and unwavering.

Suzu cleared her throat, and glanced at the desk.

Maybe she shouldn't have done that.

"So this _'Irene-senpai._'" She cautiously began.

She was already in the lion's cage, no need to further provoke.

"Is she the reason you don't sleep at night?"

A small gust of cold wind entered through the open window, flapping the curtains in the process.

Kouko turned her head to look at the window.

For some reason, Suzu usually liked to leave it open during the night. Because according to her, the smell of the night can be either extremely healing, or just a trigger for a pleasant nostalgia.

A heavy sigh escaped the half-naked girls lips, and she clenched the towel tighter around her body.

Kouko felt surprised by her roommates' perception. She would usually start working on the desk soon after Suzu would fall asleep.

More than anything, hearing_ that_ name spoken out-loud brought her an even greater surprise.

The name brought forth memories she wished to forget.

Memories of things she regretted.

Kouko now felt raw, as though the scars of her past had been picked from old dry wounds, and the exposed cuts were now being dipped in salt water.

How could a simple name cause all of these sudden unpleasant feelings to emerge?

At her roommates' silence, Suzu wondered is she had overstepped whatever unspoken boundary might have been established not too long ago.

Carefully walking to the window, Kouko peered to the area below. She spotted a dimly lit park in the distance.

Her eyes wondered from the old lamp of the park, to the gracious architecture of the buildings that surrounded it, whose warm interiors spoke of comfortable, leisurely, worry-free lives.

But these things never gave the serious girl an ounce of consolation. No salve to spread over the mental beating that name would always give her.

Kouko felt torn.

She yearned for a lifeline, the reassurance that someone, somewhere understood her. Someone who could finally make her forget, and tell her that it was going to be okay.

That she no longer had to struggle.

But there was none to be found.

She swallowed, a vain attempt to loosen the dryness of her now constricted throat, and with a head that was currently spinning in every direction, she tried to focus.

Shifting her eyes once again to the desk, Kouko studied the pens and paper that were scattered all over.

"She's dead. I killed her." She finally said, breaking the silence. Her voice came out in an uneven rasp, in her futile attempt to answer Suzu's curious eyes.

Suzu empathetically smiled in return, and gave a light consolation shrug.

She had heard the detail of the story from Nio, who had explained to her everything that was going on with Kouko, background and all.

Since she had been particularly hard to locate, and bring back, when they were once again recruiting everyone, Suzu had wanted to know where her roommate was. And Nio, after getting the chairmen's' approval in the matter, thought that the girl had a right to know.

Since all Suzu really knew was that Kouko had wanted to no longer take part in the whole assassination ordeal. Which proved to be entirely contradicting, due to her actions.

"The burden of the dead truly is a heavy one." Suzu knowingly said, voicing what Kouko had always been too afraid to admit to herself.

Kouko clenched her hands into frustrated, shaky fists. And in one, angry movement, she completely faced Suzu.

"I don't need your sympathy." She loudly confronted, frowning in displeasure.

Again, she thought of Irene-senpai, and the focus, however fleeting, awakened a yearning within her.

Suzu took a few steps towards Kouko.

She lifted her hand and cupped the black-haired girls cheek, gently locking their gazes. And for a second, Kouko's expression had unintentionally softened.

Suzu's gentle smile turned into a slight grin.

"Your skin will age faster if you continue to make such a face."

Visibly irritated now, Kouko's expressions once again hardened and she slapped Suzu's hand away.

"I never took you as the type to make light of another persons feelings." She said, ready to walk away.

She's had enough.

Before she could turn away, Suzu sighed and grabbed hold of Kouko's wrist, keeping her in place.

"Please let go of me." She monotonously said, turning her head, and preventing Suzu from seeing whatever expression she was currently making.

Slightly furrowing her brow, Suzu tugged on Kouko's hand in an attempt to make her once again face her.

"Maybe you should finally let go of the past, and try to move one." She suggested.

A hard, dry, and humorless chuckle escaped Kouko's lips.

"Who are you to tell me what to do?" She hissed.

"Well, I guess you got me there."

The room fell silent, and it was obvious that the two girls were both deep in thought.

Suzu had not intended to actually hurt Kouko with her words.

And this entire exchange had brought her both pleasant and unpleasant memories of her past love.

Maybe this was her punishment for sticking her nose where it didn't belong?

Finally letting go of the other girls' wrist, Suzu turned her head to look out the window now.

She mused with the idea that no matter how much time had passed; how much society has changed, or how advanced technology has gotten.

The clouds never changed.

And the night was always dark.

Even though she knew that the action itself wasn't entirely healthy, sometimes, Suzu liked to find high remote locations, and simply stare at the sky.

Because for those few seconds, she could trick herself into believing that if she were to close her eyes, even if just for a moment she would wake up from this eternal nightmare, once she opened them again.

She would wake up to the tender, reprimanding voice of her beloved. Scolding her, because she shouldn't be taking naps in the grass like that.

Just like he would always do…

Overpowered by nostalgia, Suzu began to uncontrollably giggle, for her foolish was of thinking.

This earned her a quick judgmental look from her roommate.

"You know, I once had someone I loved." Suzu's voice was now quiet, distant and composed. "He meant the world to me."

At her words, Kouko lifted her brows, and slightly tilted her head.

"What happened?" Her voice was quiet, careful.

Suzu took a moment to both think and recollect herself.

She did not wish to break in front of Kouko.

Especially not after she had promised herself that she would finally move on.

"Time, I guess." She simply stated "To make it simple, I lost him, just as you've lost her." Suzu finished with a small sigh.

To Kouko, Suzu seemed like a completely different person. She had never seen her look so distraught; so lost.

And there were traces of pain behind Suzu's words, Kouko noticed.

"I'm sorry…" She whispered, her voice low and hoarse.

There was a feeling of mutual understanding in the air.

Suzu smiled and sighed. She lifted her hands upwards and began to stretch.

"Long story short." She added, this time in a brighter and looser tone. "My feelings held me back for the longest of time. I was unable to move on, because I had yet to let him go." She then accusingly pointed at a startled looking Kouko, and playfully winked. "Which is what I believe you to be doing right now, am I wrong?

Bashfully looking away, the same way a child would, right after their parent has confronted them, Kouko sighed.

She no longer felt as angry as she had originally been.

"Well what exactly do you suggest I do? How exactly did you get rid of the feelings you no longer wished to have?"

Suzu took a moment to think.

"Have you tried replacing them with new ones?" Hey voice was happy, playful and surprisingly earnest.

As if that was the simple solution to all of Kouko's problems.

But as she said her 'solution', Suzu had locked her eyes with Kouko. And something unreadable had flashed through them as the words came out of her mouth.

That longing look, that had lasted a second longer than it should have, for some reason had Kouko on her toes.

"I-Is that what you did?"

"Who knows?" Suzu ambiguously supplied, feeding her own self-amusement, and further confusing her companion with whatever mixed signals she was now picking up.

Sadly, Suzu did, in fact, acknowledge her fondness for the girl.

But she knew better.

She knew that she couldn't act based on her desire for her. Because she was painfully aware, that eventually, Kouko would also leave her behind.

Just like everyone she had ever cared for eventually did.

This was her curse.

She would never be allowed to find true happiness with someone else, simply because she wasn't allowed to.

"You seem…extremely wise for your age." Kouko decided to point out, questioningly examining Suzu's facial features. "How old are you exactly?"

Suzu was caught back by the observation, and her laughter followed her roommates' remark all too naturally.

"Old enough to know that these feelings might be considered illegal." Suzu reassured between her fit of quiet laughter. "And I'm sorry about earlier. It was rather insensitive of me."

Overwhelmed with a sentimental feeling of affection for Kouko, Suzu considered hugging the girl, but was halted mid-motion the sound of her own stomach loudly growling, which was followed by a throaty laugh from Koukos part.

"What is it?" Suzu flushed, feeling slightly embarrassed.

Kouko's shoulders shook as she tried to speak.

"You sometimes talk as if you know it all, but then you go back to acting like a child. I can never keep up." She reached up to wipe away the tears that rolled down due to her amusement.

Suzu smiled.

Compared to before, where Kouko would only look at her with such a cold and distant expression, this was honestly some well-earned progress.

"Not _all_. Just enough to keep my feet on the ground." Suzu whined, playfully pouting, then laughing along.

How she had fallen prey all to easily to Kouko was beyond her own comprehension.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Suzu quietly dismissed, waving a hand. "You should close the window, you'll catch a cold with your hair still damp like that."

Kouko impatiently sighed, and rolled her eyes.

"This was your doing the first place." She scolded, loudly shutting the window, preventing further unwanted cold air to make its way in.

"So it was."

**Authors Note: So I deeply apologize for the boring chapter, it's just that Haruki can't be back yet. I especially apologize for not updating in forever, it's just that the site was having a few bugs and I was going though finals. BUT vacation is here. You know what that means? Faster updates. And by faster I mean that the next chapter will probably be out tomorrow (or maybe tonight). I want Haruki back as well, so this will be fast and painless.**

**Happy reading, and see you soon~**

**To those still going through finals, best of luck!**

**P.S. I'm not editing the mistakes in this chapter, Ive left that in the hands of a more experienced person. This 'P.S.' will be removed as soon as that person is done.**


	16. Notice Follow-up

I plan to update somewhere around April. I don't know how many of you are still following this, but I'm truly sorry for the inexcusable delay. I know it's not the same, but I do plan to conclude this story soon.


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